


It Is Written In The Stars

by Ciardha



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: 52nd century, Angst and Humor, Babyfic, Classic and New Who continuity, F/F, F/M, Family, Gallifrey, Library Fix-It, Pregnancy, Romance, timebabies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-06
Updated: 2014-07-31
Packaged: 2017-11-23 21:50:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 43,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/626887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ciardha/pseuds/Ciardha
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is actually the first story where I played with the theme of the Doctor and River's family. It's going to continue through the 12th and 13th with River, working with Moffat's hints of using a seriously revised version of the late 1980's Cartmel plan. </p>
<p>About the story title- it comes from John Lennon's song "Woman". It's been my favorite song of his since it came out in 1980. I happened to hear it again while I was coming up with this story. I realized the lyrics could fit River and the Doctor's relationship quite well. So I picked the line "It Is Written In The Stars" from the song for my title.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It is written in the stars

Chapter 1

Earth Year 5152, University of _____

"…and this holovid shows a typical early 21st century British adolescent group at a party. Note the then illegal consumption of various stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, and the still changing sexual codes…"

Oh, mum and dad would so kill me if they knew I had used that cell cam video from that party… Professor River Song mused.

She remembered that party quite well, Amy, Rory and herself- then known as Mels, had just passed their 16 plus exams. Amy's results were an acceptable average, Rory had very high scores on some tests, just average on others, while she was top level across the board. The nicer instructors tried to reach her: said what brilliant mind she had, that she must go on to university after her A levels, which she did… but still, she was Mels then, hellbent on a course of destruction…swinging madly between the brainwashed programmed assassin and an innocent young girl full of romantic fantasies about the "raggedy doctor" of Amy's stories.

At 11 Mels was already declaring to Amy and Rory the man in the blue box would rescue her and marry her. At 16 she knew to keep her fantasies to herself, but they were still there, in her good dreams. But by that point they were shifting into a still innocent virginal girl's romantic sexual dreams…

"Professor Song, that one girl, she's just staring around like she's shocked. Were there still adolescents then that acted more like those mid twentieth century ones you showed us last class?"

Ah, the moment when Amy had taken the phone and turned it toward me, teasing me about the look on my face… "Yes, a minority by then, but a few. Some came from religious backgrounds where this kind of behavior was forbidden, while others just directed their sexual urges toward emotionally vivid, but naïve and vague inward fantasies. The later would have reacted like this girl is, with an innocent stunned expression. Note the lack of revulsion on her face, which would have pointed toward a repressive religious background. She's probably just shocked to see this happening in real life, with kids her own age. In her mind these are things she's heard grownups do, things she had only seen on video. It's rather probable she hadn't yet seen much of what was then called pornography. She dresses like she's 'streetwise' but it's a facade as far as sexuality and drug use goes." River laughed inwardly - I was so naive!

This class, and the book she had just published- "Adolescent sexuality in Earth's 20th and early 21st century United Kingdom" was a secret tribute to her parents. She usually taught archeology, but after successfully selling the class topic to the anthropology department, she had been allowed to step into their department's domain. The university had to turn students away from the class after it closed as full almost immediately after it was posted.

River turned her back to the class to shut off the holovid when she heard from a distance that oh so familiar and welcome noise. He's finally coming to see me again! I was hurt and wondered why he hadn't after I became a professor. Then I was hired by Lux corporation to go along on their trip to The Library, and found out why. He knows now I survived, so it's safe to visit.

I wish I could have told him about the dream I had after our date to the Singing Towers, the dream that saved my life, but the Doctor who came to the Library wasn't him, and there was no time… and I was in no shape to go anywhere but back and forth from my classes for weeks afterward. Then when he never showed up after that I was afraid I'd lost him for good.

The next time I saw him was Manhattan. I had to let him know, but not my mother. It was enough, he figured it out. Things just went bad so fast after that though and we were both too much in shock to say anything more later. We just quietly stayed in the Tardis, then he dropped me off and left right away. Both of us still filled with pain and grief, neither quite able to cope with it yet, but at the point where we pretended we could. I, better than him. I hope he found a companion to travel with, someone who will keep his mind busy and draw him away from the darkness. I'm not as dark as him, but there's wild madness in me that is easy to fall into when I'm in the Tardis with him. He tempts to indulge my wild and mad side a bit too much.

But maybe I should have just left my words at "anywhere and anytime"… and stayed with him anyway. No, someone in this marriage needs to be the stable one, and who would have believed it back in Berlin, but it's me. Rory, I know I get that from you. I wish you and mum could see me now… I'll never leave him like the companions do, but I want to be the calm center for us, and I've discovered I can be. He needs it, and so do I, a real home, and all that comes with that.

I hope the Doctor parks the Tardis at my house, and remembers to make it invisible, since he's so determined to hide himself now. I wish he would have visited a week after he dropped me off from the awful Manhattan experience. I would have been able to tell him something that would have brought some joy back into his life, like it did mine.

Well, River chuckled softy, he'll see it now. Her hand caressed the large rounded belly of a very obvious late stage pregnancy. She'd believed she had been pregnant almost two and a half Earth years now. A nearly full time lord baby clearly took time to be born. She had only been part time lord and that pregnancy had taken a full Earth year for her poor mother.

River looked at her chronometer, approximately five Earth minutes left for this class. If the Doctor parks the Tardis in her yard, he'd be here in approximately two of those minutes. Best speed up things, so everything gets done before my husband becomes the center of attention.

Keeping her back to the door, she glances at her students, "Does anyone have questions? If not look at your screens and answer the quiz that should have uploaded."

River smirked at the groans. Yes, she gave "pop quizzes" frequently. She wanted to make sure her students were paying attention and learning. They always complained, but she also had the university record for most repeat students.

While the students quietly worked on the quiz, she shut down the classroom equipment. Her class was the last of the evening. She liked teaching night classes. She liked the pleasure and hint of atavistic fear that coursed through her on the walk home. How her younger self would sneer at that. Or maybe not. Mels remembered the horror of Greystark Hall far more sharply than she did now. Mels would have pretended that stream of fear wasn't there though. Professor River Song, mother to be, did not. It was a safe outlet for that mad thrill seeker she still was deep down.

"River!" came a happy cry behind her as the old fashioned door crashed open, banging against the wall.

Now there's a different type of thrill, she murmured, her back still turned to the door, and him.

"It's Professor Song at work, honey." She deadpanned. Glancing toward her students she motioned her head back toward the man literally bouncing on his feet in the doorway. "This is my husband, Mr. Song." She almost laughed aloud on the name. "We haven't seen each other in quite a while due to his frequent traveling. Now, finish the quiz before the class ends."

She knew he had playfully non-verbally mimicked her last sentence by the badly stifled laughter of her students. She just rolled her eyes and kept her back turned to her husband impatiently waiting in the doorway- slowing down the gathering of her class materials to a crawl. Just you wait, honey. As soon as the class ends I'm going to turn around. I can't wait to see your reaction. You haven't noticed yet, I can tell.

The bell on her chronometer sounded and all the students' quizzes, finished or not, instantly downloaded. A few frustrated students softly cursed in various planetary languages, quizzes unfinished. She'd be lenient this time, due to the distraction. But they'd find that out next class. After most of the students had left, a couple begged for merciful grading on the quiz as they headed for the door.

The Doctor drawled "Mercy? She's Professor River Song."

"Oh honey, those were new students, that was mean." River mock scolded, as she finally turned to face him.

The expressions that rapidly flew across his face were priceless, there was even arm flailing. Oh, she'd got him good this time. The few remaining students tittered as they walked past the happily stunned man in the doorway.


	2. Chapter 2 Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor's point of view up till he opened the door last chapter.

Chapter 2

Prologue

A few minutes earlier, onboard the Tardis

"Real landing lights, but still, all you." 

The lights spelled out "Hello Sweetie" in Old High Gallifreyan, and then more prosaically "park here" in English.

"Yes, dear." The Doctor muttered, "Bossy wife", but a smile belied the grumbling.  
"Sexy, can you show me where my lovely wife is right now?"

The Tardis obliged, giving him a location inside a university classroom.

"Teaching a night class, somehow that feels right."

Exiting the Tardis, curiosity made him examine the landing lights, now fading to dark.  
"Clever girl, set them up to only be triggered by my Tardis."

Eager to see his wife, he set off on a light sprint for her classroom.

"Late for a class?" A passing student queried him.

A simple lie was the best answer "Professor Song's."

"Oh, you are in deep trouble, then, she hates when students are late- she growls at you."

"Human growl?"

"Human, but it's a close imitation of the Cheetah people's language I've been told."

"So you've been on the receiving end?"

"Oh yeah. Once. Never was late again." The student laughed nervously "If I were you, I'd just skip tonight's class and tell her you were sick next time. Good luck."

The Doctor nodded solemnly, but once the student turned away, he grinned and strolled toward the closed door.


	3. Chapter 3

It Is Written In The Stars  
Chapter 2

The flailing subsided as she drew close. The Doctor's arms pulled River in as close as her condition allowed. One hand caressed her face, while his other arm curved awkwardly around her waist. "Yowzah." He whispered, delight on his face, desire in his eyes.

River shivered with pleasure, and strangely felt a light blush cross her cheeks.

"Haven't seen that reaction since our first night." The Doctor murmured. He wondered if she knew the dark amber of her dress was his family's color on Gallifrey… It was ankle length and belted in the front right under her breasts, like one of the female variations of Gallifreyan robes. No wonder he hadn't noticed the pregnancy until she turned around.

River laughed, "I was so trusting and adoring of you. So much still a girl." She looked embarrassed. That's something I would have only shown to you though." She stepped back from the embrace, her expression going neutral, "Okay, let's go home."

"Yours or mine?" The Doctor grinned.

"Yours is parked at mine, honey." She chuckled, and led the way.

He attempted to take her bag of classroom materials, but she playful pulled it away each time his hand touched it. "Oh how sweet, a boy walking me home, wanting to carry my things…"

"River!" He growled her name in frustration, then simply swept her off her feet into his arms.

She giggled, "Was waiting for that." then she snuggled close into his hold. "Oh, love the new suit and hair", as her hand stroked across his shirt front. "Makes you look so manly…" And she thought,- glancing at the faint grey strands mixed in with the brown, makes us look more of an age…

"As opposed to a twelve year old boy, hmm?" he said with a bitter smile.

"Sorry about that honey, was feeling my age that night."

"Felt like I aged a few hundred years that night." His eyes stared off blankly.

"Yeah."

"I was so selfish and stupid. If only-"

"Hush. What's done is done. I don't want you to blame yourself for that."

"Simple to say-"

"Not so simple to do, I know."

"Why are you blaming yourself? It's not your fault in any way."

"I encouraged them, didn't I?"

"Yes, out of your love for them, and how much better you understood that than me."

"Still, they were happy and lived a long life together in the end."

"All human lifespans seem so short to me…"

"I know." Her expression was melancholy and she turned her head away.

He stopped walking and looked straight down at her in his arms, "Look at me."

She looked him straight in the eyes, her expression a carefully schooled blank.

"I want you to know that the fact that you will get old doesn't hurt me. I don't care if you will someday have the most glorious all white amazing hair surrounding that beautiful face of yours. I don't care that someday there will be oh so many deep lines around your eyes, on your forehead, your cheeks and under your jaw. I want to see that, my dearest wife. You will still be the most amazing woman in all time and space. You have no idea how incredibly overjoyed I was when you let me know you hadn't died in front of me in the Library!"

"I-"

"I'm not finished. Let me say this."

She nodded and rested her head against his chest, closing her eyes.  
He would have rather had her still looking at him as he said this; he knew she was intently listening to every word though. "I'm deeply ashamed at how I didn't figure how to save you, that you had to save yourself, yet again! Every second of every day I hate how my failures hurt you in so many ways! But, as selfish as I know it is, I'm glad the lady who stole my hearts for all time is part time lord. You'll age, yes, and faster than me, but your lifespan can be many thousands of years, if not more. You may be in your last regeneration, but I will guard that life of yours, and our child's with every fiber of my being. You are the most precious thing in the universe to me."

Her hand reached up to caress his face. "And you to me."

"I know" He chuckled, "you proved that in a rather spectacular fashion."

"I was so overwhelmed. I had fallen head over heels in love with the man from my fantasies! It turned out he loved me too. I was not going to be forced into that horrible fate by anyone, not even by you to save the universe! You were the most precious thing to me in all of time or space."

"I know. That's why I made sure we healed that forced fixed point in a way that wouldn't kill me, and would fool those that hurt you."

"The Silence, Kovarian and the Clerics, yes. Oh honey, it was one of the happiest days of my life when I waltzed out of Stormcage, completely free. Thank you for erasing yourself from all the files across the universe."

"I want to hear about that day." The Doctor murmured, brushing a kiss on her nose.

"Oh it was wonderful, but I can show you, I have a holovid of it in the house."

"That's so you!" He barked out a laugh. "But first I want Sexy to see you."

"Oh and I'm not sexy?" River smirked.

"You're always sexy, also amazing and glorious."

"Good answer, honey."

He awkwardly attempted to snap his finger while still holding her in his arms.

"Allow me, dear."

He was as curious as she was, would the Tardis respond to her? She snapped her fingers and the door opened wide. "Child of the Tardis, indeed."

River kissed him as he carried her into the Tardis "And now we've finally done that Earth wedding ritual."

"Do I keep carrying you to the bedroom?" The Doctor whispered huskily, as she gently disengaged from his hold and put her feet on the floor.

Her eyes lit up with excitement. "Only if you want to go to bed right now, honey... I'd rather go there on my own power, though. I think we've played this part of the romantic game long enough." She set her bag on the floor. "I'm more in the mood for chase and catch me." she stood back up, eyes hot with desire.

"I like that game." He leered.

She smirked. "You'll be surprised how agile a pregnant woman can be… sweetie." She winked and ran up the stairs with a girlish giggle.

The Tardis played along, creating new corridors for the chase as they ran along them, occasionally creating temporary obstacles for him and switchbacks for her. When she started to feel a bit breathless- agile, yes, her pre pregnancy stamina no- she turned the tables and grabbed his shoulders from behind, "Caught you!" River gasped out with a laugh.

"So you did, now what are you planning on doing to me?" The Doctor smirked.

"Well, I do have a list…" She flirted.

He laughed knowingly, tapped on a wall, and through the opening a bedroom suite appeared.

"Looks more my taste than yours, honey." She teased. The bedroom décor was in a tasteful black with white and red accents, decidedly art deco. The light level was low but enough to make out details.

"She always favors you over me."

"Don't pout honey; I'm sure she'll change it to something you like if you ask nicely."

"It's you, so I like it too."

"Well, I don't mind the expressionistic style you like, dear- a little mess is good for the mind, as you say."

"Too maudlin, no more talking now." He took her hand and drew her toward the bed, his expression dark with lust.

"Ooh, and he takes charge"

"That's right, now off with the clothes." He leered with a dominant vibe, tossing his jacket to the floor, yanking the bow tie off and starting to unbutton his shirt. When she just stared without making any moves to reciprocate he looked at her questioningly.

"I want to watch you first." She said huskily.

"Fine by me." He grinned. "Want the slow build up?"

"Oh yeah. The tear off our clothes and rolling around all over the bed…" She rests her hand on her pregnant belly "Not very comfortable right now."

"True. So gentle?"

"Past wanting that now. I assume you know the Kama Sutra?"

"Of course" he glared, insulted she would think him that ignorant, he could show her some things still!

"I think you know some variations then… if not I can show you" she says, winking.  
He growls "I'm the one that tutored you in how to be naughty, remember?"

"Oh yes, very well, it was quite an education, one of my favorites, honey." Her laughter was throaty as she unloosened the bow of her narrow sash, directly below her breasts.

"Bows on your shoes and a bow on your dress, so do you finally admit bow ties are cool?"

"You've won me over, honey, in oh so many ways..." She smiled slightly as she kicked off the low heeled chocolate brown suede ankle boots decorated with a bow tie in the same suede color on the sides near the top. In a way he had, his silly fixation with bow ties- unlike those atrocious fezzes- was kind of endearing, especially after the way he had used a bow tie to marry them the first time. She had found herself being drawn to adding to her wardrobe: shoes, clothing and even jewelry with bow and bow tie shapes on them…

"You're so astonished at how clever and sexy I am that you are frozen on the spot." The Doctor teased as he pulled her dress off over her head.

She was on the point of making a snarky comment, but his next words and tone made her forget that thought

"So beautiful." He breathed the words out in an awed whisper as he brushed one hand across her cheek and the other over the large rounded shape of her womb. River closed her eyes and swayed toward him. The Doctor gently pulled her closer till he could wrap her in his embrace from the side, then gently let them fall into the bed.

"I've changed my mind" she said softly. "I want gentle now."

"Me too." 

He lay back and River slowly moved over him. "This isn't uncomfortable for you is it?"

"No. I like it." The Doctor caressed her rounded belly and looked her straight in the eyes. "There's something special we haven't done yet. I've held back on it, because I was afraid.-"

"Of what? What is it?"

"Joining of our minds as well as our bodies."

"Mind sex? I'd read something about it during my research, but the source material wasn't something I considered reliable, it seemed far too lurid for your culture…"

"Well, it's not just mental intercourse, but a mental joining. It's a voluntary thing married time lords could do. Usually it was only long term couples who dearly loved each other. We prohibited adolescents from it, because it's something only adults have the true sense of its impact. It is beyond anything a full human could comprehend or take in, but your mind is probably the most fully time lord part of yourself, it should be the same for you as a completely genetic time lord."

She looked nervous "Is it like if one of us dies the other will follow or will go mad from the loss?"

"No! I'd never have asked if the bond was that intense. If I die before you the deeper bond will not do that to you. Grief is the same no matter what choice you make."

"If you die before me-" Her expression was horrified.

"Hush, I don't want you to grieve that intensely. Don't." He felt oddly calm about it, as long as she was safe in mind and body he could finally let himself die. Not for a long, long time yet, but someday when it happened, knowing he wouldn't be alone, she would be there, he could accept his fate. He could accept Trenzalore as well because of her, but not for some time yet...

"But-" Her expression was pleading.

"I mean it. If you can't think of yourself at first, think of our family. They'll need you. You've always been the calm center in my storm of craziness, from the first moment I saw you…"

"They?"

"You know the legends and you know how they keep becoming fixed points for us..."

"So you've stopped running from them?"

"I decided after our marriage became a fixed point to willingly accept any positive ones involving you as my wife and any family we might have." His tone was warm and tender.

The Doctor was no longer running from Trenzalore for himself, but for River's sake. He wanted to be sure she had some idea just how emotionally strong and good she really was before their ability to run from it ended. If she was strong enough at Trenzalore, she would be strong enough when his final end came. The legends had his wife outliving his 13th self by hundreds of years. His life would be an eternal loop, hers nearly- it would have a break in time, his would not.

"Then yes." She had openly welcomed becoming his wife. The child, as well, filled her with joy, even while she shook with fear for its safety. Their enemies were far too dangerous and powerful. Even though none of the legends referenced danger for any of the children of "the lady of the waters" before adulthood. What happened to her had been too traumatic, a part of her would never be healed from it…

"We need to have some kind of continual physical contact between our foreheads and direct eye-to eye contact when we start.".

River moved off of him and the Doctor sat up. She awkwardly got into a crossed legged position- letting her large pregnant belly rest on top of them. He sat crossed legged as well, moving in close enough that his legs touched hers. Then he brought both his hands to her temples and looked her straight in the eyes. She copied his movements and closed her eyes as he closed his.

"There aren't any real words after this" He said telepathically, it's all about dropping our barriers, it is like intercourse when people really love each other, in a way, but in our minds. No, forget that, it's like, it's like, oh never mind can't think of anything that it compares to!" He mutters in deep frustration through their contact. Then he breathed deep, calming himself, going for a explanation he hoped she could follow. "Drop your natural barriers and I'll drop mine. Express your love for me but without words- just let the feelings be completely open."

She gasped at the first unguarded contact between their minds. This was very different from their brief telepathic exchanges, even the emotionally overwhelming one at their first wedding. He had indeed told her his real name, but telepathically, right before her whispered in her ear to look into his eyes. This was definitely more like when she gave herself to him the first time…

"Oh, it's been so long I've forgotten what it was like" He said inside her mind. "I think we'll need words after all, and visuals…

Abruptly she saw him as well in her mind. The Doctor stood before her, with the same but older face, with longer hair. "You were right, you know, this is how I really should look." His eyes were sad, "I'm sorry I hurt you by looking like an overgrown child."

River touched his face tenderly. "I understand. It wasn't that bad" then she grinned, "was even fun sometimes."

Her inner self's form was nearly the same, except the developing baby was not inside her womb but floating beside her, connected by a glowing cord. He wouldn't tell her, but he could tell their unborn child had been, unknown to her, giving her some of his regeneration energy. Blocking the thought from her, the Doctor telepathically spoke to his soon to be born son, "You are definitely our son. Your mum would be so very angry if she knew you'd sacrificed one regeneration to make her better, though."

The nearly newborn response was a jumble of panicky feelings with no coherent words, and flailing arms and legs, very like his father's nervous reaction.

She picked up on their child's obvious unease and glared at her husband suspiciously  
"What did you say to him"

He grinned, "Just told him to be a good boy, because if he was bad, you'd be a very angry mum." He blithely lied.

"Humph, rule number 1." She stated with annoyance.

He just grinned more.

"Should we wait till he's born to do more of this? I don't know how much I can concentrate on opening to you with our child here with us."

"Yeah." He looked embarrassed that he hadn't thought of the distraction of their child in the link with them. "Drop your hands from my forehead and open your eyes- that will break the deep connection." 

When her eyes opened she saw he'd done the same.

"We can still communicate on a basic telepathic level like this, but all our natural and developed blocks are in place. I want to train you to have stronger developed blocks like me- not tonight, but soon. If the legends continue to lead to more fixed points you'll need strongly developed mental blocks like me. But for tonight we both need something else…" he dropped the sober expression and let his lust show through again as he lay down on the bed.

"Yeah." She smirked and moved over him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> River reveals how she survived the Library, and they talk a bit about their losses.

It Is Written In The Stars  
Chapter 3   
Resting together in the bed, he asked, "How did you find out?"

"About what?" she murmured sleepily.

"The Library, what would happen there-"

"Had one of those dreams"

"One of those dreams?"

"The type I used to have sometimes, before the Library."

"You mean what humans call precognitive dreams?"

"Yes."

"Sounds like the block they put on your 'time head' was breaking down."

"So that's it. Ever since the Library, I've been just seeing things that haven't happened yet, outside of dreams."

"How often?" Anxiety tinged his question.

"Just random times, not too often... The first one that wasn't a dream happened right after the Library …"

"What happened?"

"I'm sure it involved you, even though I didn't see you. Even though it's happened in my personal timeline, and although you are past it right now, it may be a sp-"

"Forget that rule, between us. We stand outside of time. I trust you to understand about fixed points now, so it's rubbish. You also seem to have the natural filter, despite their tampering…" He looked visibly relieved. "If you see something, it's important to us in some way, probably means it's in flux, so we can change it, if it's bad."

"I have to tell you how it first happened, and how it changed later."

"Go ahead"

"I executed the plan- three seconds count then an automated activation of the vortex manipulator. That was the longest safe interval before I or it was fried by the electrical connection. I'd had you save copy of myself in the sonic as a fail safe, did you discover that?"

"Yes, and guessed at Byzantium that was what I was doing." He sighed, "I thought in the Library it had been my plan to save you, but it was yours." He looked disappointed, he had thought he had been so brilliant, but instead it had been his beautiful wife's brilliant plan instead. The only role he'd played was giving her the sonic and then saving the copy to CAL.

"It wasn't my choice of survival but if my plan fell apart it would give you a chance to figure out how to save me. I know how you feel about losing those you love…"

"You believed in me that much?" His hearts lightened, even if it had been her plan, she had put so much trust in him out of her love. Then his hearts sank again because if her plan had failed, she would still be waiting for that rescue…

"Of course." Despite the disillusionment she'd lived through with him, at heart she still loved and believed in him.

He looked ashamed "I hadn't figured anything out yet, not anything I trusted enough when we met up in Manhattan. When I saw you I thought I was seeing a pre Library you. When you said I was to call you Professor River Song I was in terror I was just about to lose you, maybe forever…"

"I know honey. I was feeling upset that you hadn't visited me since I was pardoned and became a professor. Then I lived through the Library and figured out why. You thought there was no reason to come back to that time until you figured out a way to safely get me out of there. On my side, soon after felt nearly recovered from the Library, I experienced a sudden feeling of doom about my parents. I wanted to bring them here, not have them on Earth of any time… I knew they would be lost to me forever if they were on Earth, so I made plans to bring them here until I knew it would be safe for their return."

"That was your time head ability. I hate that feeling! I try to do anything to stop what I see from happening, before it becomes a fixed point."

"Have you ever succeeded?"

"A couple of times, but the alternate was not much better." He looked bitter. "They weren't dead, but they lost something."

"From my experience, that's infinitely better."

He sighed. "Remember Donna Noble?"

"Oh yes." River smiled.

"She's one of those. I wish I could have done more…"

"Tell me exactly what happened, I know the outcome, but not the details."

"She accidentally essentially became a fully human time lord. It would have fried her brain and killed her if I hadn't wiped every memory of me from her conscious mind. I've thought on any possible solution- nothing."

"Are you sure? That was you with another face, the one in the Library, right? "

"I'd have a minute, maybe less before she put it together, but what could I do?"

"You need another person with time lord DNA to take in the dangerous level of knowledge and power right?"

"Yes… River, you clever girl! You could do that, while allowing her to keep all of her own memories! Might be a bit risky a plan, but yes!" He jumped up excitedly. "Let's go right now!"

"It can wait until after our baby is born?" She smiled indulgently.

"Yes." He looked embarrassed, then thoughtful. "But you best not let her see you, until I need you. You could instantly trigger her memories."

"I look the same, just older, yes."

"Even more beautiful."

Oh, honey, what a silver tongue you are developing…"

My tongue isn't silver, it's pink just like yours, now if I was-"

"Oh honey, hush." She laughed

He looked mock offended, but then he grinned

"You knew and just pretended, didn't you!" She gave him a mock glare.

"Yes, to make you laugh."

She rolled her eyes but smiled back at him. "You keep doing that honey and you'll just sweep me off my feet all over again."

"I'd like that."

She snorted "I'm sure you would- me practically swooning over your kiss or a whispered romantic phrase..."

"Don't belittle yourself. Just because you were naive doesn't mean it was bad."

"You said I embarrassed you…"

"I was being an ass. I was overwhelmed at the intensity of your innocent and pure love-"

"Me, innocent and pure?" She laughed with complete disbelief. "That was the girl who just two years before-"

"Acted out what she was brainwashed to do, and playacted from what she had seen on movies and TV- 'Hello, Benjamin?' Honestly River, you were what, 22? And still a virgin no less! Trying to pretend you were some kind of seductress…If it hadn't been me, who finds everything about you sexy, even a girl pretending she's a woman, you couldn't have succeeded at that game."

"So much for being a 21st century bad girl." She laughed, embarrassed. "I may have known how to use all kinds of weapons, steal any kind of motor vehicle, lie in over 20 languages, but when it came to the other type bad girl, strictly amateur then."

"And I was over 900 years old, and plenty experienced."

"You think I didn't sense that, under that childish looking face was a very experienced man..." She flirted. "I may have been innocent compared to you-"

"Compared to your mother too, even when she first stepped on the Tardis…" He looked ruefully embarrassed.

"Ooh what did my mother do to you?" River laughed.

"She found the pictures of my former companions and made embarrassing comments…"

"Oh, I can imagine- Doctor, almost all of these are female, just what have you been up to with all these ladies?"

"Close." He flushed and looked even more embarrassed. "But that wasn't the worst of it…"

River looked uncomfortable, "How intimate did you get?"

"I didn't want to be intimate at all! Not with her!" He shouted and his face turned bright red.

"How-intimate-did-you-get?" River ground out; worried her husband had done something that would have colored his relationship with her in a kind of creepy light.

"No sex! I promise! She tried to push me into it! Grabbed me, snogged me before I knew what was about, then when I pushed us apart she grabbed me by the braces and tried to pull me on top of her! The day before her wedding no less!" The Doctor jumped out of bed and was windmilling his arms and pacing, looking frantic.

River started laughing so hard she was gasping. "Oh mum…" The Doctor's state with the wild flailing was even more hilarious naked, River thought, convulsing with laughter anew, holding her belly. The baby in her womb responded with sharp and vigorous movements. River's laughter eased, sensing baby was annoyed by the jostling. But she still she couldn't stop slight gasping laughter…

"It's not funny!" Then he paused, and broke into a half broken laugh. "No, you're right, it's hilarious! Oh Amy Pond, what must you have thought when you realized you had tried to seduce your daughter's future husband?" He half laughed again, with tears in his eyes "I think I nick named the wrong Pond Mrs. Robinson!"

"Well, as you said, I was the silly one who used that line." She smirked ironically.

"Thank you, River. First time I could talk about your mother and laugh."

"Me too." A slight smile played on her lips. Then she looked serious, "but I need to tell you the rest about what happened the night of the Library.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Oh god, everything hurts." She lay collapsed face down in her back yard. River never remembered feeling such pain, every single cell in her body felt like it was on fire.

"Thank you little vortex manipulator, you got me home." She whispered aloud as she looked sadly at the damaged manipulator. Could she even repair it? It certainly wouldn't be safe to use until it was repaired. How long would that take…? Guess I won't be adventuring for a while, at least not the quick way...

She attempted to move and realized she couldn't. Nothing was broken but she had no coordination or strength. Then she began to shake. "Oh no, shock." She panicked for a moment, and then calmed her breathing. Panic would just make unconsciousness come sooner. She was hurt, but would be okay. There would probably be a long recovery period from this stunt.

If only the manipulator had got her to her target point- her bedroom that lay just inside the door and up the stairs. Even if she had collapsed on the entrance way floor it would have been on plush carpeting, not the pretty reddish moss that served to aid the partially hydroponics based energy system of the city. It felt damp and cool under her body. That helped at first, but now shock was setting in and she felt cold and wet- what was left of her suit was a mess and did nothing to shut out the wet or cold.

Have to activate the emergency climate protocol- at least I won't be as miserable. Her throat raspy she croaked out "Action protocol- epsilon, subroutine code: theta sigma, river…"  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"I went unconscious, but the protocol activated. When I came to I was on the lawn, warm enough, still hurting with little strength or coordination. I was able to drag myself into the house and made it to my living room couch and collapsed again. I woke again sometime later, crawled up the stairs, pulled off that mess of suit, staggered to my bedroom and fell into bed. Didn't wake up for nearly a day. Didn't leave the bed except for necessities for a week…"

"And the changed memory?"

"Getting to that. A week later I was finally recovered enough to want to do something other than try to sleep through the pain. My first thought was to dispose of that awful suit I never wanted to see again. I loathe spacesuits; I hope I never have to wear one again! Every time I worn one it's been connected with death! Her face contorted with barely suppressed fear and rage- so many awful memories, she felt overwhelmed…

He leaned in close and pulled her into his arms and whispered "I'm so sorry. Maybe we should stop talking about this…"

She took a deep breath and regained control, then shook her head no. "I have to finish this; the rest isn't so bad…" 

"Okay" His hand caressed the small of her back.

She hummed with contentment at the skin to skin touch, and closed her eyes. "I remembered pulling it off at the top of the landing. But when I went there it was gone. Then a different memory of that night flooded my mind. It was the same up to my starting to lose consciousness on my lawn, but I somehow woke up in my bed, in a nightie I'd never seen before. I had no memory of how I got there, and realized I felt much more healed than I recalled the night before."

"This is the first I've been here."

"I know …"

"Guess I'll need a key."

"You could always sonic it open." She teased.

"I could-" He looked sad and contrite.

"No, honey, I'll give you a key. You are my husband, this is your home too. I've wanted to tell you this from the moment the house became mine."

"What's mine is yours, what's yours is mine?" He lightly smiled.

"Really? You too?" Her eyes lit up.

"Really..." He realized just at this moment he meant that with all his hearts, every bit as much as she did. He suddenly saw a distant vision of her traveling in the Tardis with their grandchildren, after he was gone, and yes, with himself as well, returned to the beginning of his life cycle… a tender but bemused expression on her face- her hair all white and clearly elderly physically, and yes still every bit as beautiful…

"No more regeneration energy to fix the damage!" She said sternly, startling the Doctor from the vision of her far future self.

"Okay."

"That better not be rule number one!"

"I promise!" He looked aggrieved. "Besides, there's another way."

"What?" She still looked doubtful and angry.

"Think, River. Where are we?" He looked annoyed that she was being so bullheaded she couldn't see the obvious.

"The Tardis."

"Yes. And what do I have here if I or my companions have a medical emergency?"

"Oh." She looked embarrassed "Sorry I snapped at you."

"I think some Artron energy from sitting in the vortex in the Tardis should be enough- if not, I'm betting she'll be anxious to donate a little more- you are her child as well as Amy and Rory's. You wouldn't deny your other mother a chance to help you, would you?"

"That was quite a guilt trip dear. But no, I won't deny her, as long as it doesn't do her any harm."

"None, whatsoever, isn't that right?" he spoke to the Tardis.

The Tardis hummed with a happy sound.

"See." The Doctor looked arrogantly self-satisfied that he had out thought his wife and that the Tardis was on his side of the argument.

River sighed and shook her head. She was going to be cared for, whether she liked it or not. Best to just accept it… "Treating me like a helpless child" she muttered aloud.

"No, like my wife, who needed medical attention. But speaking of a helpless child, I 'd like if our baby was born in the medical bay here in the Tardis."

"Have you ever delivered a baby?"

"Yes. Both a human infant and a time lord infant"

"Okay." Relief coursed through her he had some experience delivering a baby. "I feel safer with our baby being born here as well. How did you come to deliver those babies though?"

"The human baby happened when I was on Earth on one of my extended stays. I took on the identity of medical doctor for a week, and amongst my experiences was assisting a human woman give birth."

"And the time lord infant?"

"A cousin who insisted a trip in one the family's Tardises away from her husband- they'd had an argument and she was so mad- in both ways- about it, she wanted to be completely across time and space from him for a while. I was the only cousin who was foolish enough to say yes." His expression was rueful. She didn't tell me the baby was due within the day. "

"When was that?"

"Not long before the time war." He looked sad. "That infant girl I delivered here in my Tardis, died on Gallifrey- just nine years old."

"Oh honey. I'm sorry for reminding you." River kissed him gently.

"It's okay." And strangely it was. Yes he still felt a deep, painful grief about it, but speaking of it felt better than the keeping it all shut away had. Perhaps he could tell her about the other loses too… but for now, he wanted to know more about what they would soon gain. "Let's go to the medical bay and see just when the baby is due."

She nodded and pulled on her dress without belting it. He pulled on pants but didn't bother with the rest.

"I have something that's way more reliable than any machinery your doctors have. We should know to the minute local time in seconds."

"I am impressed. Even in the 52nd century nothing is that accurate when it comes to childbirth. Especially with a hybrid child of a hybrid child."

"Especially with those hybrids being part time lord, no one would have the right tests- I don't believe even the Silence did. They just observed and guessed."

"Yes." River shuddered.

"Sorry, my turn now , painful things, best forgotten."

"It's alright." And with him, it was. He had some small clue of what she had gone through, and bore much of the burden of it. Maybe she could share more of what she remembered with him, maybe it would make the nightmares less overwhelming someday.

"Good thing we checked, look-" The Doctor pointed to the screen

"Tomorrow at noon! I'll have to ask someone to teach the class tomorrow night."

"Do you have any other classes?"

"One, but that's two days away. I think I might be able to do that one."

"I want to take care of our baby any time I'm here."

"I'm sure you can." She smiled tenderly.

"I know most 52nd century Earth colonies like this have the same open, enlightened culture that they have on Luna, but I still want to."

"You love children, I know."

"So do you, although you hide that for some reason." He looked puzzled.

"It was treated as a weakness in women in early 21st century Earth social culture. Younger women of that time, especially the more highly educated ones, took in that cultural brainwashing and dismissed women who chose to have children as "breeders", "baby mamas", and so on. I couldn't help but feel a little shame inside that I loved children and secretly wanted to be a mother very much. It's so different here in the 52nd century, but social programming from adolescence and early adulthood is hard to overcome, harder in some ways than the unconscious brainwashing I got as a young child."

"So that's why you chose the 52nd century?"

"Yes! And thank you for letting me get my Doctorate in this century. It was such a positive education for me. I don't know when I was happier with my life than when I've been free in this century. I wish…" River stopped abruptly, she was going to say she wished her parents could have seen her as this woman she is now or as the student at Luna University, but she knew if she did it would hurt the Doctor, because it's something he neglected to do and could have.

The Doctor looked at River anguished. He knew what she had almost said aloud and why she didn't. He could possibly fix it, go back, have them visit, even just once, and not create a paradox for the universe. But he knew if he did, that would make the eventual final parting of the ways with her parents that much more painful for River, and he wouldn't do that to her.

River saw the look on his face and took his hand and caressed it. "It's alright. I know. Don't burden yourself. Just consider it an idle wish." She smiled at him, eyes soft and concerned.

He nodded and smiled weakly. "Idle wish, it is. Have plenty of those myself. Wish I could eat jammie dodgers every day, wish I hadn't fallen down in front of you when I was trying to show off at how skilled I was at dancing, when I wanted to be-"

River laughed at the last. "I remember that- our date when I was at Luna University. It was my twenty third birthday and I was in complete girlish awe of you."

"I wanted to give you that fantasy date with me that you talked about."

"You did. I didn't care that you fell down."

"You laughed at me." He mock pouted.

"It was a wonderful real first date."

"You were so naive, yet so open and expressive, I couldn't resist." He blushed.

"Oh, that was the best part, my love."

"Felt like I was a dirty old man."

She laughs "You were! And I loved it!"

"You are still so young, even though you don't think you are. If you had been a full time lord on Gallifrey I could have been arrested!"

River laughed even harder. "Aren't you glad I wasn't!"

"Yes!" He laughed ruefully, then his expression shifted to a smirk. "I know what we'd both love to do again tonight…" his expression shifted again, to gentle and concerned," but if the baby is going to born within 12 hours, you need rest before your labor pains get too sharp- are you feeling them now?"

"Just felt a weird twinge, guess that's it."

He nodded and took her hand- "Sleep for you. I'll be there beside you in our bed. No need to come back in here until it's almost time, our bed is more comfortable, plus I can hold you." His expression was tender.

"I'd love that." She cuddled against his side. He kissed her cheek, then they walked back to the bedroom.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their baby is finally born. Big chapter this time. What a roller coaster of emotions while I was writing it. One scene in particular made me laugh out loud as soon as it was on the page. Others made me tear up enough I had to step away and come back later to continue.

It Is Written In The Stars  
Chapter 4

Early the next morning

River called up her best friend and colleague at the university on her PDA. A grey haired woman with ancestry stemming from Northern India appeared on the screen.

"Kirpa, would you mind teaching my class today?" River grimaced slightly as a stronger contraction passed.

"Ah, the baby, right? Absolutely, I will teach your class today. Get your rest, I'll teach your other this week too. Did your husband finally show up?" The older woman looked concerned.

"Yes, he did" The Doctor answered, peering at the screen over River's shoulder.

"Wonderful!" Kirpa laughed. "Now you take care of her, make sure she sleeps in the rest of this week! You hear me Professor Song- rest!" Kirpa said mock sternly, then ended the call.

"Yes dear." River smiled indulgently to the blank screen. Kirpa had taken one look at River the first day she walked into the archeology department and offered her some of her lunch. River promptly developed a liking for Kirpa's curried chicken salad. The two women began to talk and forgot all about the time until Kirpa jumped up suddenly "My class! Have to go! Let's share lunch from now on!" She shouted back as she raced toward her classroom. From then on they had. A few weeks later Kirpa told her that she considered River another little sister. "You remind me of my baby sister Bavanna"

"I hope not!"

"Oh, do you know Bavanna?" Kirpa looked surprised.

"No, no, I hope Bavanna isn't like me." River looked ashamed.

"Why would being like you be so bad, dear? You are very bright, love teaching, are an enthusiastic researcher, write delightful papers- quite unusual for our line of work as you know. " Kirpa laughed.

River laughed as well. "Oh but that's the good things, I also have a temper and am more than a bit mad..."

"We all are more than a bit mad, River, most people just don't realize it, and those people you see as so much saner than you, they aren't!" She laughed. "Take my delightful little sister, Bavanna. On the surface she comes across a just a wonderfully devoted mother to her children, but when the creative urge strikes her, she locks herself away in her studio for hours- where all you hear coming out of the room is singing and swearing! You see, she's mad too!"

"So I remind you of her?" River laughed.

"Oh yes. And she has a husband that is rarely home too." Kirpa rolled her eyes. "George is one of those time agents, so called. To me he's just an irresponsible idiot, but Bavanna loves him. He pops in random times, showers the children with presents, celebrates with my sister, then off he goes again, and nine months later there's another child. After the third one, I suggested to her perhaps that was enough, but no she adores children, so does her husband- he's just too much of an irresponsible idiot to stick around to help raise them though."

River felt a moments anxiety when she heard Kirpa's brother-in-law was a time agent, but she felt no sense of danger attached to her, in fact just the opposite. Kirpa felt like someone quite safe, and she already knew of her kindness. She wondered at why Kirpa would see similarities- she hadn't told Kirpa who her husband was, just that he was a traveler that rarely visited her, and popped in at random times.

"Just wait till you start having children." Kirpa smiled, knowingly. "I know just from the short time I've been friends with you, you'll be just like my sister about the children. I've seen you when Michael's children come in every day. Not five minutes in the three of them are curled around you and you love it. You even took them along to your class that once!" Kirpa teased. "If you weren't married already I think Michael would have proposed to you!"

"So sad about his wife, killed in that crash six months ago."

"Yes, they had such a good marriage too, makes it that much harder when you lose them."

"What happened to your husband?"

Kirpa sighed. "Big shot corporation hired him as part of their terraforming team. Unfortunately the corporation lied about the prelim study. The planet was completely unstable, near constant seismic activity. My husband and his team set up their equipment, then a massive quake struck, killed the whole team, crushed to death…" Kirpa's voice drifts off, her eyes sad.

"How many years ago?"

"Twenty. My son was only 5 and my daughter 3. They barely remember him. I'd only been a professor here a year." Kirpa shook her head, as if to clear the painful memories away.

"Ah, too much sadness today. Now back to you and that husband of yours. How long have you been married?"

River laughed. "Kirpa, I hope you won't think less of me, but both my husband and I were doing time traveling when we married, it's too confusing, even for me, to remember how long ago it was. I remember the day and month but the year, well…." River was relieved, that because of her husband's antics, her time in Stormcage had been completely erased from the universe's records as soon as had been released. No prison would want to have on their records that they had imprisoned someone for seven years for an imaginary crime. Her record was basically completely clear- in the 52nd century at least. She smirked.

"Not at all. What a interesting young life you must have had."

"To say the least! It was always interesting around him. Oh he drove me even more mad at times, but it was also wonderful."

"But you had a part of you that wanted something more stable, right?"

"Yes! I love the crazy adventures, but I also want this. I wish sometimes that he could have a bit of this side to him, so he could stay here with me, find something stable to want to do…"

"We can't help who we fall in love with, I know that with my sister and her husband, and now with you and yours." Kirpa patted River's hand. "Maybe he'll prove to be more mature and responsible than my brother-in-law is, and if not, it can still work, somehow it does for my sister." Kirpa smiled soothingly.

"Sh-" A sharp contraction brought River's mind back to the present, so sharp her knees buckled for a moment.

The Doctor was instantly holding her from behind, brushing his mouth over the shell of her ear before he whispered, "up on the bed with you". Then putting his hands under her knees as she awkwardly wrapped her arm around his neck, he lifted her onto medical bed.  
River was surprised anew at how her husband was able to shut off the emotions she knew he was feeling inside and become cool and professional, but still gentle and soothing.

"Here, take this on your tongue, it's perfectly safe for time lords, so should work for you too. Maybe just not as effectively."

"What's it for?"

"Stops the pain. It relaxes the muscles so they can stretch without pain, won't harm you or the baby, you being part human it might also work so well you get a bit loopy"

"Drugging me up, huh, so you can do what you want to me?" She teased.

He laughed and tapped her on the nose. "Just take it, I hate to see you crying with pain, especially when it's completely unnecessary." He let the cool, professional façade slip for a moment.

Obediently she opened her mouth and stuck out her tongue. He laughed again and dropped it on her tongue. It dissolved within seconds that her tongue was back inside her mouth.

"Was just going to hand it to you and let you put it in your mouth."

"Where's the fun in that?" she teased, then gasped as a contraction started then abruptly ended. "Oh, it stopped." She grinned, she felt great! Kind of weird, but really good…

The Doctor smirked as her expression shifted to a glassy eyed grin. Loopy it was. The babbling should start any time now. If she had been a full time lord it would have just relaxed the muscles, seemed to relax the tongue though a bit, even on full time lord women.

His cousin had talked incessantly after her dose. Things she said made perfect sense- mostly a list of all the many ways her husband was the biggest jerk in all of space and time. Honestly, the man had been an ass, just not as bad as his cousin felt at that time. They reconciled soon after the baby was born and were still together the last he saw them. He shut the rest of that thought away, as indeed River started babbling.

At first she couldn't seem to coordinate thoughts with words at all, what came out of her mouth were just weird noises punctuated with giggles that he didn't even bother trying to decipher. Gradually her time lord part must have kicked in to process it though, because what she was saying become words, but were still disjointed with lots of giggling. Seemed to be something about a hat of his-

"And whoo, blew straight off your head…" Another fit of giggles

The Stetson in Utah, he realized. "Why are you talking about my Stetson, River?"

"Not Stetson, Utah." She was semi aware now, the words were almost a coherent sentence.

"What about Utah?"

"Think, second time there, was pregnant."

She was forcing herself to speak nearly coherently, he realized. She was confessing to him about either this pregnancy or perhaps a miscarriage. River was a hybrid and so was their child. The Tardis hadn't shown him when the conception date was, just the time of birth. It could be this child if his guess was right. That would have put it's conception at around probably 2 ½ years ago her timeline. That would have been… oh yes- that birthday, they had indeed done things that would have resulted in this child. The Doctor blushed at the memories, it had been an amazing night… a nostalgic smirk replaced the blush. But if River needed to confess about it, he should help her. "What made you suspect you were pregnant in Utah?"

"Was sick, only Rory saw, lied, was afraid. In prison, no place for it, Clerics your enemies, mine too. So denial. All I did, after; Pandorica, Byzantium, Library, Manhattan, was pregnant…" She abruptly burst into sobbing.

"Oh River, River, it's over and done now, you are fine, so's the baby." He took her hand and caressed it.

"No, no thanks to me!" She spat out with self-loathing, while tears coursed down her face.

"Shh, don't cry anymore, love. And it's exactly because of you that you both are alive." His arm wrapped around her back, while the other turned her head toward him. He lightly kissed her lips repeatedly, and held her close until the sobbing subsided. He pulled back and looked her in the eyes. They were completely clear now, and looking at him full of love.

"Thank you" she murmured.

He smiled.

"I think I needed to tell you that. I've held in that guilt all this time."

He nodded. "Feeling better now?"

"A little."

"We have a while yet before you'll want to push, and push gently, love. Didn't know to tell that to my cousin and-"

"No, don't tell what I think happened, did." She began to giggle again.

"Oh but it did, I literally caught the baby!" He broke into helpless laughter. "I was such a mess, the afterbirth flew right out too- smacked me right on the head!"

They both laughed for a while.

"As I was saying," he said, "it'll be a while yet. We can talk about anything you like to pass the time, or do things that we can do while just sitting and waiting. I can go find a board game or something…"

"No, talking is fine. Funny, now that I've told you one secret I want to tell you more. Let it out. There's one I always wanted to tell you.."

"What one is that?" His curiosity was peaked.

"You remember in that warehouse in 1969, where I crossed my timeline?"

"Yes."

"I got myself out of the spacesuit."

"I know, you told me you clawed your way out."

"I lied. I wasn't anywhere near that strong back then. I, meaning adult me, found myself while we were separated in the warehouse. I ripped that horrid thing open, freed my child self, and told her to run and not stop till she got to New York City."

The Doctor's expression showed he was less surprised than she thought he would be. "I kind of guessed that. As you said, child you wasn't that strong. Child you hadn't been able to get out until adult you was there. Easy to surmise it was actually my dear friend River who freed the child. I was already starting to see how protective you were toward children. I just guessed the child had run away before you could reassure her that we meant no harm. That we were here to save her from whoever had done that to her. I finally put it together after Demon's Run."

"You mean in Berlin, you already knew?"

"Not quite everything, but I strongly suspected I knew who the mad young woman was that abducted us at gun point, yes."

"I don't like to think of myself as Mels much."

"Don't like some of my regenerations either."

"Which one do you dislike the most?"

"Sixth ..." He paused, deciding not to mention the one he truly detested. "I think you've seen why." He looked at her knowingly and she blushed.

"How did you know?"

"Oh you pretty much let the cat out of the bag at the Library, wife."

"Oh, when I said-"

"'I have pictures of all of your faces', yes."

"I couldn't leave it at that either, blabbed about not being able to figure out the right order, needing a spotter's guide" She groaned.

"We'll let's get you familiar with them then. We can do that while we're waiting. If you want to tell me what we did, I'd like that." He pulled a monitor around, tapped a few buttons, then a picture of an old man with long straight hair appeared. "That's me toward the end of my first life."

"I definitely saw you, but you didn't get a good look at me, when you grabbed my arm, I think. I broke away and took off when I heard Susan calling for you. Was afraid of spoilers on my side!"

"When did you go on your Doctor tour?" He grinned.

"Not long before I got out of Stormcage."

"What made you think seeing Susan might be a spoiler for you?" The Doctor was almost certain he knew but he wanted to confirm.

"Remember at our wedding when you called me 'the woman who married the Doctor'?"  
He nodded.

"I researched, all the legends also said there was just one wife for the Doctor, and she was the mother of his children- even the two that connected you to the even more mysterious Other on ancient Gallifrey…"

He closed his eyes. "I've been afraid of that all my life."

"What part?"

"All of it in a way, but especially being the Other."

"If the legends are true, you won't be alone" She caressed his jaw line and while looking deep into his eyes.

"I, I think they are, now." He returned her gaze. "But we must keep that between us, tell no one."

"I know."

He broke the somber mood with a smile. "Shall we continue?"

"Yes"

A funny looking man a bit younger than the first, who had shorter straight black hair appeared on the screen, "Second"

"Oh, him." River laughed. "Things were fine at first, but I then I got more and more annoyed with the casual lying and manipulation of the companions. We argued, I knocked him, err you, out, wiped everyone's memory of my visit, and I left."

"Sorry."

River waved her hand back and forth in dismissal. "You were so much younger and foolish, that's all. So what face is next?"

The next was a man a bit older again, but with wavy white hair this time, and he was actually faintly smiling in the picture. "Third"

This time she smiled, "Oh that was fun."

"Really, what did we do?" He grinned.

"Oh there was some mutual flirting, yes, but mostly lots of running, including through a battleship!" She giggled.

"And when you had to leave?"

"So charming, told me it was a shame would have to forget such a delightful lady, but told me not to worry, he could wipe his own and his companion's memories of our adventure."

"Oh, I know how I did that, it's not gone, just blocked off. I want to remember it now."

River waited patiently, watching the play of emotions cross his face as he unlocked the memory. He gave her a very Three-like smile for a moment, then switched to the loony grin that was his own. "River! We should have an adventure like that!"

"Repeating yourself? How unlike you." She teased.

"Oh, I'd repeat almost anything with you, wife." He said huskily, with that smoldering eyes look that he knew would still leave her feeling weak kneed. Then he smirked arrogantly, because he knew.

River rolled her eyes. "My husband, the universe's biggest ego."

He pouted. "That's mean." Then he laughed and tapped her on the nose, "You must like it, don't you?"

"Humph!" She couldn't help a faint smile.

"See, see! I knew it!" He childishly twirled around her, smirking even more than before.

"I see I'll soon have two children in my life." She laughed

"Two? What do you mean? There's just one in there."

"Yes. The other is my husband."

He pouted again.

"Uh huh, exactly what I meant."

"You seem to like it." He looked stubborn.

"I like grown up you better." She flirted.

"Oh that, of course you do." He smirked.

"And there's the ego again." She teased.

"Am I really such a trial to you?" He suddenly looked her with vulnerability.

"Oh, my love, surely we are both trials to each other at times, but no matter what we still love each other, right?" Her expression was soft and open, letting her own vulnerability show through.

"Always." He offered her a gentle kiss on the lips. Then drew back with a slight smile.

"Shall we continue?" He pointed back to the monitor.

"Yes."

"Alright. This was my Fourth regeneration."

"Oh him." The laugh was a bit embarrassed.

"What happened?"

"Oh, just I was a bit too flirty and womanly for where you were at then."

"Did you leave it to me to erase it?"

"Yeah"

He sighed, "maybe I shouldn't, but I'm too curious for my own good"

River squirmed uncomfortably and looked at him slightly anxiously, as he unlocked that memory.

"Oh River, River. Making such a suggestive comment about jelly babies, you naughty girl." He scratched his head, blushing, but his eyes danced with amusement. "No, I'm not mad, wife. Probably even deserved it. And really you visited me at just the right time. Sarah Jane and I had that huge misunderstanding, and I hadn't met Romana yet. I was alone and feeling very sorry for myself. No wonder I felt a bit freer to flirt, just a bit, with Romana. Settled a bit too much into one way of looking at things before."

"She was full time lord too though."

"Yes, that's true…." A sadness touched his face.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "No, it's fine. I want to talk about all that with you. I think I can, little by little. It's easier than…"

"I know. I don't know how much I'm ready for that either. How long does it take before you can talk about …."

"Don't judge by me. It's taken me over 200 years to get this far about Gallifrey."

"So I shouldn't feel bad about not wanting to talk about when I was Mels or Berlin?"

"I don't think so. It's only been around 10 years since Berlin for you, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, what about the more funny moments as Mels?"

"Those involved my parents, so it hurts for another reason."

"Sorry."

"We're saying that to each other a lot today."

"Well, as a great man of Earth once said, "Love is saying you're sorry, every five minutes."

"John Lennon, yes."

"Yes! Are you a fan of his perhaps, River?"

She giggled. "Bet you'd have never guessed I was a big fan of John Lennon and Yoko Ono."  
The Doctor looked at her as if he was putting together pieces of a puzzle. "As Mels or as River Song?"

She smiled. "More as River Song, although Mels in her deep down secret romantic side was all into their great but tragic love story."

"And River Song?"

"What they represented, something new between men and women, a striving for being full partners in life and love."

"Is that what you want with me?"

She smiled. "I know we can't have that, it's not in our natures."

"Don't be so sure. I may not always be like this, a thoughtless boy inside a oh so ancient man. Think about those legends you know, about the Other. Maybe I don't fear that as much as I used too, and it's because what I can give you that I can't now."

Her eyes looked sad. "I'm not ready to say goodbye to this you."

"Then I'll run from Trenzalore as long as I can. For you. And I have seen you as not just my equal, but my better, for a very long time, my amazing wife."  
The kiss they shared was tender, a lingering press of lips, then a gentle brush before they parted again.

"For the other half of the sky…" I truly understand those words now, he murmured, their faces still close.

"After all, it is written in the stars." She responded, looking deep into his eyes.

"I never meant to cause you sorrow or pain…" He returned her gaze. 

The Tardis, responding to the mood of her 'beautiful thief' and her 'child', let the original song waft through the room. The two let their upper bodies embrace and swayed together to music, singing the final lines together "I love you...now and forever."  
They silently held the embrace for some minutes after the song faded away.

Then she chuckled softly. "I suppose we have our song, now"

"Yes, one of the best." He smiled. "Now, back to showing you my faces in the right order, he moved back to the monitor. A handsome, young blond haired man appeared on the screen. Fifth."

River giggled again, a less embarrassed look on her face this time.

"What?"

"Oh, I flirted with you again, you took it better than you did in the Fourth regeneration. Well, I wasn't quite as naughty, either." She smirked.

He laughed. "I take it this one was fun?"

"Kind of" She smiled slightly lopsided. "Well, looks like I actually met this you in order. You were so flustered last time, so unused to me, I toned it way down. Just enough to get you interested. And you were, started following me around." She sighs, "You won't be able to unlock that one, sorry, I had to wipe your memory that time. I gave you a few spoilers that I shouldn't have."

"Oh, what ones?"

"I let slip that your 11th self was the first one I met. And when you persisted endlessly on the nature of our relationship, I got so exasperated I said something about being married to you."

"Oops."

"Funny, that you believed me immediately." She said, a bit more sharply than she had intended.

"I'm sorry." they both blurted out at the same time. That broke the tension, and they smiled at each other.

The Doctor sighed heavily. "The next one, he's the one, I like least, other than… "

"Than who?"

"You'll meet that one on Trenzalore. I hope you haven't seen him yet, at least. I need to prepare you for him, but you said you've seen all my faces? Even the ones that are still spoilers to me?"

"I'm not sure, we aren't done yet."

"So you how many faces have you seen?"

"Counting yours, eleven."

"River, don't you know time lords regenerate twelve times? Thirteen 'faces', as you say."

"I lied a bit in the Library."

"River, you lied almost as much as me in Utah. Bad girl." He teased. It no longer hurt his feelings, he understood her reasons…

"Learned from the best." She teased back, looking straight at him.

He grinned, then looked at the monitor, a resigned expression on his face. A man with hair even more curly than River's, with an arrogant expression appeared on the screen. "Sixth"

"Ugh. Sorry my love, but you were right."

"Can I apologize now for my behavior?"

"Apology accepted."

"Do I want to know?"

"Oh, it was very short, and actually was an accidental encounter. I was looking around an archeological site and we literally bumped into each other. He, you, knew I was time lord, because he fell on top of me and noticed I had two heartbeats. He was screaming about the time lord council spying on him before I could even shove him off me. I got mad, knocked him out, wiped his memory, didn't bother with the companion's. She was looking at me in sympathy, made some comment about how heavy the Doctor was, while I was wiping his mind. I told her to not worry, I wasn't the council, just an archeologist. Then I walked away and got out of there with my vortex manipulator."

"The companion, was it her?" A picture of a woman with dark eyes shoulder length brown hair appeared on the screen.

"Yes."

"That was Peri."

"Oh the one who became some kind of legendary warrior queen?"

"I think so." The Doctor looked uncertain and uncomfortable. Then he sighed. "The time lords interfered in her time line so much I'm not sure where she actually ended up. I supposed that one is the best of them. The whole structure was breaking down and Rassilon ultimately used that to gain total power. That caused the last Time War… I'll talk about that more, later. River, part of my reluctance to step into the legends around us, was knowing how it would end. Not our endings, but our descendants. No use not saying this, it's already fixed. I lied a bit to myself, I think, I don't think they all died either before or during the Time War-"

"Susan."

"Yes, and her probable descendants. Maybe a few others scattered through space and time. I dared not even speak of them to anyone else though, much less sought them out. Their safety is being separated from me, once they left Gallifrey. I knew most of them as cousins by the time I left late in my First incarnation. Only Susan insisted on still calling me grandfather, so my mind remembered being a husband, a father, a grandfather, but only in the vaguest sense. Now I'm moving toward the other side of the circle…" He touched River's pregnant belly, and the baby in her womb moved in response.

River clasped his hand tightly. "It's a fixed point as you said. I promise I'll do what I can to save as many as I can."

"I know. This next face of mine I'll show you, he understood what was to come, he hid it from himself less than the others of us." An image of man who looked late middle aged appeared. "Seventh."

River sucked in her breath. "So that's who he was. I'm not frightened of you most the time, but that face…"

"Sorry. I had a feeling it might have been like that…"

"It started out just fine. But then I got disturbed at how that girl, Ace, was being cruelly manipulated by your Seventh self. After she was asleep, I confronted you, him-"

"Go ahead and say him, it makes it a bit less confusing, right?"

She nodded and continued, "I confronted him and he shocked me. He knew a lot about who I was and told me so. Told me he knew I was his wife, knew I was a child who had been abducted, tortured and brainwashed to kill a future version of himself. He told me he knew things I didn't know yet about myself. I tried to run away in the Tardis from him so I could leave, but he knew how to manipulate the corridors better than you do. He backed me into a corner with no weapons on my person. I have never been so frightened of you, not even in the pyramid when you grabbed my arm, then chased me even while you were handcuffed."

"I am so, so sorry, about both of those."

"Oh, if the second one hadn't involved that awful thing we had to do to fix time, it would have been quite exciting!" She let her desire show through.

He smirked- "When you feel up to it, we can reenact the 'exciting' parts."

"Ooh, yes." She said huskily.

He looked regretful to end this mood, but as awful as it was he had to know what his Seventh self had done. "What did I do to you, as my Seventh."

"Physically, nothing. He just told me to stop going back and looking at your other selves. I was scared enough of him I agreed. He let me leave then. Said he knew how to take care of the memories. He was the last one I visited, I was too scared to continue after that."

"But that's just seven."

"Remember, I said I didn't know what order…'

"Yes. Alright. Lets move on. I don't want to unlock that memory, it sounds bad enough from your retelling. The next face was somewhat younger, just at the bridging point from young man to middle age. The expression on his face was kind.

"Oh, yes. He was wonderful. He asked me to stay and travel with him. I said I would one day. He thought I was full time lord at first."

"And how did that come about this time?"

She smiled teasingly, "Want to unlock it?"

"Well, I suppose I'll have to now, won't I." His tone was stern, but his eyes were amused, and soon aroused, as he let them flow back into his conscious mind. "Would you like to have a night like than again?" He said after the last of the memories trailed off.

"Yes."

"Did you do it that time? Just lock it away in my mind, rather than wipe it?"

"Yes. Your memories of things were still kind of hazy, you told me, so I wanted to be careful."

"Yes, I see now you drove the Tardis, told me we were married, and that you were half time lord. Then you locked those memories away, as we lay in bed together. I had these strange dreams for quite some time after, half memories of you. Until the Time War replaced those infrequent dreams with a constant nightmare of what I did." His expression turned grim. A image of man also in earliest middle age like his Eighth, but with his hair all shaved off, appeared on the screen. "Ninth."

Her eyes looked tender and sad. "You were so broken, worse than after Manhattan. I had to put you back together."

"We met before I met Rose?"

"Yes. The man I saw at first, he could have never even spoken to or saved her. You were shattered. I took care of you, and the Tardis, until I thought you could function. I was shaking when I wiped your memory of me. I was afraid that might send you back down where you had been. But you did okay after I left you. I left you right before you met Rose, parked the Tardis where you took her back to."

He looked at River full of love. "I must have transferred what I had to already had felt for you, to her."

"Perhaps. But she was what you needed right then. I carried too many of my own emotional scars to truly get you back where you could heal yourself."

"You think that, thought that after Manhattan too, but I think you are wrong, my dearest wife. It's been you always, more than anyone I've ever known. Those two hearts of yours have given me everything, and then give me even more. It's me, that is inadequate for you. You deserve so, so much more than me. But you give it all to me, asking so little in return, yet I'm unable to even properly give you that."

"Oh my love, that's not true. I know it's difficult for you, but as with everything else, you still try. That's enough for me."

They embraced again, holding each other until River shifted uncomfortably, feeling an strong downward pressure. The Doctor saw her expression change and shifted her downward onto the hard pillow, that now braced her back. She opened her legs and clenched her hands on the sides of the bed.

"Time to push now, wife."

"But gently" She laughed, slightly short breathed from the increasing intensity of the downward pressure.

"Yes, gently." He chuckled.

Two gentle pushes and their son entered the world, wailing loudly as soon as the air hit his face.

The Tardis responded by making the air a bit warmer and humid. It was slightly uncomfortable to the new parents, but the newborn settled into a few soft whimpers. Those whimpers ended as soon as he was laid on his mother's chest.

River bared her breast and their son almost instantly latched on and began to feed. River stroked the back of her son's head and both parents looked tenderly at their child. The Doctor gently stroked their child's back, then gazed into his wife's face. At this moment all that existed in their universe was the three of them, and the Tardis around them.


	6. Chapter 6

It Is Written In The Stars  
Chapter 5

"What do you think of your mother's name for you?" The Doctor cradled his newborn son as he spoke to him.

"He thinks Jonothon Song is just fine, honey. I 'speak baby' too." River laughed.

The Doctor pouted. "Ruining my fun."

"Oh, the two of you can pick out whatever insane nickname you want. " She smirked.

"Mummy's going to be all no nonsense with you, looks like it's up to Daddy to be the fun parent."

River rolled her eyes.

 

Later, the Doctor brought out his cot for their son.

"Oh, it's beautiful" River ran her hands over it.

The Doctor was startled for a moment, and then remembered something. He decided to confirm his suspicions. "So, you've never seen this before?" he pointed at the cot

"No, should I have?"

"No. It's been buried in my private closet for centuries."

"Okay." She shook her head and wondered what had provoked such an odd question. Did he think she had rummaged through his private closet? Oh she had looked once, shortly after they married, but it just looked like a bunch of uninteresting detritus back then, she'd lost interest quickly and closed the door back, never thought of it again, until now.

The Doctor kneeled down, preparing to lay their son in the cot. He half turned away from River as she rested in their bed. He thought about the events at Demon's Run, specifically about River. How she had eventually turned up and what she had said. Now that he recalled, how she looked too… That wasn't the River who was in Stormcage, nor of the time she is in right now… That was a River from long after, perhaps many centuries from now. That far older River had either had a restored ability to look younger than her true age, or had used a perception filter. She went to Demon's Run in place of the River then in Stormcage.

Rory said when he spoke to River she had refused to come, and looked determined but scared. The older River must have visited her younger self shortly after that. The older River assuring her younger self that she would take care of letting her parents and the Doctor know who she was. He bet that older River didn't tell her younger self just how much older she was either. How surprised the younger River must have been at that moment, still believing his lie that even time lords, or part time lords couldn't even briefly cross their time lines. She learned the second time in Utah that wasn't true. A brief crossing, even brief physical contact, was possible. It was advisable to make such encounters as brief as possible though to avoid any chance of time paradoxes.

The far older River had given herself away, thinking back. Perhaps her own emotions had caused her slip ups. How emotional a moment it must have been to see her long lost parents once more… And with him, she was far too assured, too calm. When he had raged at her, other than a slight nervousness, she seemed unaffected by his words, and had quickly and gently soothed his temper- something she still couldn't do. He wondered when she had, thoughts of Trenzalore crept into his conscious mind… He quickly shoved those back, neither of them were truly ready for Trenzalore yet.

Perhaps the River at Demon's Run had been one that actually had seen "all his faces", and was his widow... His hearts ached anew for her at that moment, if so. He brought back the moment he had gazed into her eyes… Yes, he had missed it then, but those eyes were oh so far older. Her face, although looking much as she did now, was a bit too old to have been the River in Stormcage. None of them had noticed it then, they were too distraught. When she had stroked his hand- yes- there had been hint of frailness below the surface that shouldn't have been there. So, a perception filter. 

The pattern of her hand over his, that had been her name, in Gallifreyan . He had noticed that point at Demon's Run. He just thought that she was silently telling him who she was in his own language, reinforcing what was on the Gamma Forest prayer leaf and her gentle words. Melody and Pond did translate into Gallifreyan, that was what she patterned with her hand over his. Perhaps it wasn't just that message, but a more subtle one, to not be distraught about the Library, she had survived it, that their time together would be long. A message he wouldn't comprehend until now…

But what had he done then? He ran away to let her deal with all the emotional fall out of the failed plan. Amy had been rescued, but not without an extreme cost to her and to her daughter. Oh, he had looked for Melody Pond like he promised, and found her. Something he never told Amy or Rory. But mostly what he had done then was run from Amy and Rory, and even River a little. But as for finding Melody, River didn't remember how she got from New York to Leadworth at four years old. She had thought the Silence had found her again and placed her with the Zuckers…

"River, you know how you told me this morning about your encounters with my earlier 'faces'?"

"Yes?"

"When you regenerated in February 1970 in New York, it wasn't Kovarian that found you, it was me."

"Oh. That explains the weird dreams I had when I was little."

The acceptance in her words surprised the Doctor.

"If you can accept my 'Doctor Tour', honey, who am I to judge you? Thank you for saving me, and bringing me to my parents."

"Would you like to remember it now? I only locked it away, didn't wipe it. You were so tiny, and with that hybrid physiology and a fresh regeneration I wanted to be as careful with your mind as I could. "

"Please." 

The Doctor laid their son in the cot and sat down beside her on the bed. His hand touched the base of her skull, while his forehead touched hers.

She held still until he moved away. She quickly breathed out, overwhelmed with the emotions the memories provoked, then she threw her arms around him in a tight embrace. "Oh, I love you even more now!"

"I'm sorry the Zucker's weren't the type foster parents I wish they had been."

River shrugged. "They never hurt me. They kept me fed and clothed until I was eighteen. Let me live at the house even after that."

"But they didn't give you the love all children need."

River shrugged again. "Millions of children on Earth alone, have that kind of relationship with their biological parents every day. My biological parents, even they were children like me, did nurture me." She smiled nostalgically.

"I've noticed you've never tried to meet the Zuckers since you last regenerated."

She shrugged again. "It's like you said. They just raised me. I wasn't ever truly their child. I feel no need to see them again."

"What about your grandparents? Brian, Tabetha and Augustus?"

River smiled. "Oh Amy took me to see her parents some time back, pushed me into it. I'm glad she did. Augustus and Tabetha expect me to visit regularly. That was kind of difficult when I was in Stormcage, but I managed." She chuckled.

"So do they know…"

"I told them, same visit I told them they would be great grandparents. I think that made it less painful." Then she sighed. "But Doctor, I'd advise you not to try to come, at least until I can arrange something. Tabetha quite dislikes you. I tried to reason with her, but she refused to listen. Augustus isn't so angry at you. He accepted it was something you couldn't control. I think Tabetha does too, deep down, but it's just harder for her."

The Doctor looked sad, but nodded. Perhaps it would be better if he stayed away, not make any contact. He could never apologize enough, and what was an apology but empty words. His words couldn't bring Amy back to them, no more than it could bring Rory back to Brian. He had run from telling Brian too, couldn't bear to see the sadness crush the man down like it had himself. He wondered if River had any contact with Brian, he didn't seem to be aware he had a granddaughter. He was surprised Amy had taken River to her parents, but Rory had never introduced River to Brian. He understood Rory's reason though. How could you explain?

River didn't tell the Doctor Tabetha had at first raged and told her that she should divorce the Doctor and never tell him about the baby. Tabetha even told her to move in with them. River had gently dissuaded both notions, and told both her grandparents how much she loved her career in the 52nd century. How in that century bringing your young children to work with you was the normal practice, as long as the job wasn't dangerous.

That had made her grandparents quite curious about their granddaughter's life. She brought them to visit with her vortex manipulator. Her grandfather, had asked her question after question about the vortex manipulator- some that she didn't know the answer to. Her grandfather seemed pleased about that and began to expound on a theory.

River was surprised, she had thought her extreme intelligence had been due to her time lord DNA, but realized some had come from her delightfully eccentric grandfather. He should have been a scientist, she thought. Tabetha had shushed him after he had expounded on his theory for several minutes.

"I'm glad you have a down to earth career, dear." Tabetha said, with a mischievous smile.

River laughed with surprise, she never knew her grandmother had such a wonderful sense of humor.

"Tabby, you quite caught our granddaughter by surprise." Augustus chuckled. "That is why I fell in love with your grandmother, never knew what she was going to say." Augustus and Tabetha looked at each other fondly.

River felt such a wonderful bond to them at this moment; this must be what it is like to be in an almost normal family… It was such fun to look at the happiness and awe on their faces at being on a space colony in the 52nd century, with their granddaughter. Augustus, especially, wanted to stop at all the information stations and watch the holovideos in the visitor's center.

River wasn't about to do to her grandparents what the Doctor did with his companions- just drop them in blind into a situation. She would carefully and slowly get her grandparents familiar with the time and place she lived in. She was determined they would have a safe and pleasant experience. So she would just take them to the visitor's center, her office, and her home. Then take them back home.

After the first couple of videos Tabetha had taken in enough information, she let Augustus watch the others, while she spoke with their granddaughter.

"It's good you've established a life away from that man."

"Grandmother, I love him."

"He charmed you just like he did my Amy, then seduced you on top of that."

"It wasn't quite that way."

Tabetha waved her hand, letting her granddaughter know that's how she saw it and nothing would change her mind.

River sighed. "Let's not talk about my husband then."

"Fine. I'd far rather know more about your life."

River thought petulantly, the Doctor is part of my life, but aloud she asked, "What would you like to know about?"

"Oh, tell me about the people you work with. Are they nice people?"

River smiled, and told Tabetha about Kirpa, Michael and the others.

"Do you like that man, Michael?"

River laughed, "Not that way. As a friend."

"Ah, too bad. I think he sounds like a fine man. Will we be meeting him and that nice woman who called you a little sister?"

"If we can tear my grandfather away from here." River laughed.

"Leave that to me, dear." Augustus looked slightly disappointed, but smiled at his granddaughter. "Sorry, just got too caught up with everything here. Let's go see your office."

To make it easier River just introduced Augustus and Tabetha as "a couple of my relatives". Back in her office, she showed them her book on ancient Egypt- knowing that was her most "Doctor free" work. And that work would also look like an archeological study to them.

"Have you mentioned to anyone that your family lives in the 21st century on Earth?"

River laughed "No, they'd never believe me." It wouldn't be wise, either, she thought, too many dangerous enemies of both herself and the Doctor, she wouldn't endanger any family members…

 

After the short tour of her home, they all sat down for some tea.

"Looks like you haven't really started on buying baby things yet, dear." Tabetha commented.

"Just been too preoccupied."

"And mourning Amy and Rory."

"That too, yes."

"Well, dear, if you like, we can do some shopping for you, and you can bring them back when you visit."

"Thank you. I'll take care of the furniture here."

"But clothing, toys, nappies, those kind of things?"

"Yes."

River smiled, thinking of the baby's bedroom in her home. Fully three quarters of what was in there were gifts from Augustus and Tabetha. The furniture was a gift from Michael- his youngest had just outgrown baby things recently. Kirpa had not only come over and helped her decorate the room, but had given her gifts as well, a few for the baby, but mostly things for herself.

River wanted her husband to see where their baby would sleep. "Honey, I'm feeling recovered enough to move things to my house now. Come with me, I want to show you where I live." River lifted her son out of the cot, the baby half woke and whimpered, but immediately went back to sleep once he was settled in her arms.

The Doctor hesitantly picked up his cot, silently pleading with her.

"Oh, yes honey, please do." Nothing pleased River more to know that something of the Doctor's would be in their child's bedroom.

The Doctor grinned and made a whoop of happiness, then hefted his cot into a more comfortable position and followed his wife into her home.

"We'll go to Jonothon's room first, honey. I'll show you the rest later."

The room was painted Tardis blue, which made the Doctor grin, as he set the cot down.

"He'll know why as he grows up." River smiled.

The Doctor walked over and gently kissed the top of his son's head, then his wife on the lips. River held on and deepened the kiss, before releasing her husband. "You'll stay for a while?"

"As long as I can." He looked sad. He knew River and their child deserved someone that was more stable and responsible, but knew that wasn't him.

River touched his arm gently. "It's fine, honey. Truly. Visit whenever you want."

"You really don't mind?"

"I don't mind. I've known you for some years now, and I love every bit of who you are. Always will."

"Even when it drives you mad?"

"You already know that. How often have you teased me when I said I hated you-"

"No, you don't." He grinned. For once, for this moment, all was right in the universe for both, make that all three, of them.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clara won't be featuring much in this story for quite some time. But she gets her first mention in this chapter. Events happened slightly different than in the Christmas special- slightly better on the Doctor's part. I've incorporated some canonical information that we know about Gallifrey and the Doctor's childhood in this chapter, plus another nod to the probable direction Moffat is going with his revision of the Cartmel plan.

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 6

They were now sitting together on the deep blue rug in the nursery. They were just watching their newborn son sleep in the Doctor's cot, nether feeling the need to do anything else.

"What happened to you in between the time you escaped from the astronaut suit in July of 1969 and when I found you in February 1970? Do you remember?" The Doctor asked.

"Yes. The first part of it wasn't so bad." River smiled. "I went to Woodstock."

"Woodstock?" The Doctor laughed. "Well that explains some things."

"What?"

"Your penchant for using hallucinogenic lipstick while you were in Stormcage, for example."

"Point." River laughed

"How did you get to Woodstock?"

"A young hippie couple found me, Josh and Sarah. I think they were probably runaways. I don't know if either was even 18. I never knew their last names. They were hitchhiking and saw me walking along the highway like them. They were nice. We traveled north hitchhiking. I guess people thought we were a family. Most the people that gave us rides were nice too, some even let us crash at their home overnight. Somehow Josh and Sarah found out about Woodstock and we joined the hundreds of thousands heading there."

"Did they ask you about the hospital gown you had on?"

"Nope, helped me ditch it, too. Sarah put one of her blouses on me for a dress and Josh made a waist band for it out of his headband. It looked so awful, but to me it was freedom. One of the families that stayed with took pity on my rather bedraggled appearance and gave me a few changes of clothes."

"So tell me about Woodstock."

"It was wonderful. There were other little children there. We all played in the mud, most the time naked as the day we were born. It was the first time I'd ever been around other children and was free to just play." Joy suffused her face, remembering those days.

"What happened after that?"

"We went back down to New York City, ended up in the middle of a ghetto in Harlem. That's when it started going bad…"

"What happened to them?"

She sighed. "Drug overdoses. Josh some time in the fall, Sarah just before Christmas. Then I was alone. Too young to know how to survive alone. But I knew I'd regenerate already so I wasn't worried."

"How did you know?" The Doctor dreaded hearing the answer, but felt compelled to ask anyway.

"That wasn't the first time. You know I was born a red head right?"

"Yes, Kovrian fooled us with a ganger that fell apart after 30 minutes. It had little tufts of red hair…"

River nodded. "At first they didn't have me in the astronaut suit when they experimented on me. My memories are still very hazy of the time with them, especially in my first life. My first regeneration happened when I was around two and half, I think. After a round of experimentation my body gave out. Apparently regeneration energy is instantly deadly to the Silence, I took out all of them that were anywhere near me when I regenerated." River smiled grimly.

The Doctor felt a sick sense of malicious joy that she had.

"I know. I feel the same way. It disturbs me a bit that I feel no guilt whatsoever about that."

The Doctor nodded. It was part of what lurked inside them both that they labeled as psychopath.

"When I regenerated my hair was then a dark blonde. They locked me inside the space suit when they did experiments on me after that. That was the form I was in 1969 when I first remember seeing you."

"Yes, we all saw you in that form. I only wish we could have…"

"I'm fine with it. As terrible as it all was, I exist as I am because of it."

"There are so many things I wish I hadn't done, and things I wish I had."

"It's not just you, honey. I regret plenty of things that I've done. But I've shared so much with you tonight, I want to hear some of your long ago secrets." She smiled.

"How long ago?"

"Tell me about your childhood, what doesn't hurt to talk about."

"I probably should start telling you more about Gallifrey anyway. What do you know about Gallifrey?"

"It was 250 million light years from Earth."

"More or less."

"It was located in the Kasterborous constellation."

"Yes, Kasterborous, the Seven Systems, Gallifrey was called the shining star of that system. Do you know anything else?"

"Yes. Gallifrey had a similar appearance to Mars from space, and was in a binary solar system."

"More orange brown, less red, but yes. But it was far larger than Earth, it was about the largest life supporting planet in the universe, almost 2 times the size of Earth."

"No wonder your people invented time machines!"

"Oh yes, and that's, in part, why we achieved space flight far more quickly than humans did."

"What long journeys there must have been during your age of exploration…"

"Well, it was a bit different for us, part of our population was telepathic, and they were the ruling class."

"I read a few vague things about that, something about a priestly class that waged mind control?" River shuddered, that came just a bit to close to the people who had kidnapped her as a newborn and made her their slave, their weapon, tried to brainwash her into becoming the assassin of the Doctor.

"Yes." The Doctor grimaced.

"The time lords began as a revolt against that right?"

"In part. Even Rassilon believed in free will to an extent. But for Rassilon and Omega it was more centered on rationality over superstitions. They wanted a society based on rational thought. Rassilon also shared with the Other a belief in not causing destruction to people on other planets, especially those that were of no threat and far less evolved. The priestly class that had ruled Gallifrey had been stealing people from other planets and enslaving them on Gallifrey for thousands of years."

"That's horrid."

"It was. Even Omega disliked the mass abductions and enslavements."

"It sounds like the Other was the best of the three." River smiled knowingly.

"I guess." The Doctor laughed. "He wasn't really that interested in being any kind of ruler, he just wanted a better society. I think his wife played a big part in that." He grinned.

River laughed. "Should we be spoiling ourselves this much?"

The Doctor shrugged. "There's no playbook for this situation is there?"

"I suppose not." She smiled.

Then in a more solemn tone he said, "I'd rather be thinking about this than Trenzalore."

River put her arm around him and pulled him in closer. "Me too. So how about your childhood?"

"I lived on my family's estate as a little boy. I vaguely remember this wonderful old woman I called grandmother. I knew she wasn't my biological grandmother, and I somehow knew there was some kind of other connection we had but I couldn't figure out what it was. I only saw her a few times but I knew this. Now I know, and I can face Trenzalore, even though I still fear it." The Doctor kissed River on the cheek.

"I do too. But please, no more about that now, tell me about Gallifrey when you were young…"

"I had a friend that lived on a neighboring estate. We were two little boys, carefree, spending our days running through the fields, having the sort of adventures children do anywhere."

"What happened to him?"

The Doctor looked heartbroken. "He became the mad time lord called the Master."

River gasped.

"So you know of him?"

"Yes."

"Good. River, I know we don't want to think about Trenzalore. But as insane as it sounds, I think he's the one that wants Trenzalore."

"Why?"

The Doctor sighed. "He still is that little boy that was my best friend, somewhere deep down inside. That part of him still loves me in the way children love their best friends, he wants us to be alike, and he wants to share whatever I love. It's just become completely twisted and insane."

"Does that mean?"

"Yes, if he knows about you, and our child as well, he'll want you to belong to him, as well as me. I think he may know about you already."

"What makes you think that?"

"My companion. There's something strange about her, strange as in a mystery."

"What kind of mystery?"

"Strange things. I thought she was just a human girl, but she's clearly not."

"Have you had the Tardis do a reading on her?"

"Yes, she can't figure out what is wrong with Clara either. Clara reads as human, but she can't be, at least not fully human."

"A hybrid like me?"

"No. The Tardis could see that. More like a ganger, but not that either, I don't think. It's eating at me, driving me mad with not knowing."

"What makes you think the Master is connected to this?"

"Nothing more than the vaguest theory, along like what I told you. She's a distraction in all kinds of ways. It's frustrating."

"What's been happening?"

"She keeps dying, then moments later another her shows up wherever I am.."

River shuddered. "Was she alive the last time you saw her?"

"Yes. I didn't bring her here because of my suspicions."

"Don't. If she's connected to the Master, I don't want him knowing about our child for as long as possible."

"I don't either. That's the reason I can't stay here long. If it was just my problem I'd stay as long as I could, till you tossed me into the Tardis and told me go chase intergalactic rabbits for a while."

River smiled faintly.

"The longer I linger, the more likely she'll die again and pop up here."

"Did you tell her you were married."

"Yes, when her interest in me crossed the line."

"She snogged you, didn't she?"

The Doctor flushed. "Yes."

River sighed. "Well, I'm glad you told her in that case. I try not to feel jealous that some pretty young girl might be exciting you, while I'm living a responsible life, being faithful to our marriage and looking older all the time..."

"No one 'excites' me but you, wife. I'll admit I do enjoy the attention of the companions, I hope that doesn't hurt you, but no one truly tempts me but you. I think whoever put Clara in my path was hoping she would tempt me, but she doesn't, no more than your mother did. I worry more that I have fallen into the trap of wanting to save her though, if there really is anything to save behind it all."

River nodded, relieved in one way, she could put aside her jealous anxiety. In another way, though, she was more afraid than ever for him. She felt guilty that she left him vulnerable that way. "I'm sorry I didn't stay with you."

He kissed her gently on the lips. "It's probably better that you didn't. I let myself sink into an awful, bitter, pathetic, mess after you left"

"Sorry. I-"

"No, I was determined to be miserable. I would have just inflicted that on you if you had stayed. You left at the right time. I wanted to be better then, for you, could still maintain it. I wanted you to be able to deal with your own damage, without having to deal with mine on top of yours. I was still at the point I could see you hiding it for my sake."

"Doctor." She looked at him tenderly.

He smiled, "You know my real name and my nickname, I know we are both scared of what my real name reveals, but I like hearing my nickname when you say it. When we are alone, I'd like to hear it sometimes."

"Which one?" She smirked.

"The one you showed off knowing during Pandorica."

"The one I vandalized the oldest cliff face in the universe because you wouldn't answer your phone?"

"Yes."

"Theta Sigma? I wondered about that one, when did you first use it?"

"At the Academy on Gallifrey."

River's eyes widen in surprise. "Wasn't that kind of tipping your hand to what you actually are?"

"It was a joke to throw everyone off. I was rubbish at the Academy, bottom of those that actually graduated."

"Did you do that on purpose?"

"What part?" He said mischievously.

She laughed. "So it was all on purpose, the supposed arrogant nickname you gave yourself, and being rubbish in school."

"Well, I've always been awful about being able to pay attention for any length of time, unless it was something I was doing. So the grades weren't completely my ruse. They called me Thete at the Academy."

"Really? That's completely the opposite of Theta Sigma."

"I know. But no one took me seriously there, and considering what I was doing on top of how I am…" he grinned.

"So Theta Sigma or Thete?"

"Both if you like." He then moved to loom slightly over her and looked at her with hooded eyes " I'd like Theta Sigma when we do this…" He pushed her shoulders downward and she let herself fall onto the rug with him on top of her.

She arched her hips upward, and laughed sexily "You are so arrogant" Then rolled them over so she was on top, but then slid her lower body off his, and let her hands rest near his shoulders. "I love you Thete." she said tenderly.

"I love you too River." One hand moved to stroke through her hair, the other to her waist. "Would you like if I called you Melody better?" He said softly. "It's what your mother called you, and you used it in Manhattan…"

"When we are alone, yes."

"So our private names will be Melody and Thete."

"Yes. From now on, I'd like that, something that is just ours." Then she sighed with a bit of sadness and sat back up. The Doctor remained on the floor. She looked down at him with tinge of melancholy on her face. "How long do you think you can safely stay here?"

His answering sigh was equally sorrowful. "I don't know. I've noticed though, I sometimes feel a strange sense of warning when Clara is about to have another death. I'd like to stay until then. I hope it's a while."

"Maybe it will be, if you aren't nearby. The deaths could be triggered by your close presence. Since you left without saying anything to her, she won't know, nor will whoever is her puppet master, if your theory is correct."

"I hope so. That would let me stay until I drive you crazy." he grinned.

"I'd like that."

"Really? You want me to drive you crazy?" He teased.

She laughed. Then gave him a flirtatious look. "Let me show you my bedroom."

His eyes flared with desire. "I'd like that."

With a last tender glance at their sleeping son, they turned on a nightlight and left the nursery.

River sighed remorsefully when they were in bed together. "I want to but I know it's best my body recovers from having the baby first."

"Well, yes that, but River, you know we can do other things, right?" He smirked.

She laughed, embarrassed. "My brain must still be mush from that wonderful relaxant, what a silly girl I must have just sounded like."

"Well, then, lets reeducate you." He leered.

"Oh yes." Her eyes danced with delight.


	8. Chapter 7

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 7

"Are you sure you want to do this" The Doctor asked again.

"Yes. She deserves to be free from danger and have her memories back." River felt an intense empathy with Donna, she knew what it was like having stolen memories. Realizing she had the ability to help, with the Doctor's aid, made her certain. The risk was quite minimal to River, being part time lord.

He nodded and looked a bit ashamed, he should have thought of this years ago. They had gone back to a time shortly after Donna's wedding. The Doctor landed the Tardis close to where Donna's mother and grandfather lived.

The Doctor rang the doorbell and was relieved when Wilf answered the door.

"Wilf, it's me, the Doctor."

"You don't look like the Doctor."

The Doctor sighed, he knew he should have explained regeneration to Wilf the last time he saw him. "Time lords regenerate several times, our bodies look different…"

"Re what?"

The Doctor sighed again. "I've got the Tardis parked right there." The Doctor pointed.

"Yeah, I recognize it, that's the Doctor's ship. So you did that thing and look and sound different?"

"Regenerate. Yes, maybe I'm not explaining this that well. If you come to Tardis-"

"Hello Wilf." River had watched the Doctor having difficulty explaining the situation and joined him with the baby in her arms. "I'm Professor River Song"

"Who?"

The Doctor smiled, "She's my wife."

"Wife?"

The Doctor nodded. "River, could you explain regeneration to Wilf?"

River laughed. "Oh my love, you didn't explain it to him before?"

"No." He pouted.

River shook her head. "If you don't mind, I think the Tardis can help explain."

River had the Tardis call up images of the past Doctors as she explained regeneration. Wilf nodded his head as River explained, but she noticed he still had a questioning look. Once the explanation ended Wilf asked

"You're his wife?"

"Yes"

"How did you-"

The Doctor laughed "Wimbly-wobbly timey-wimey, Wilf!"

River nodded. "Wilf, we're here because I can help Donna. I'm part time lord, so I can take in what had to be locked away in Donna's mind."

Wilf spontaneously hugged River. "You can save her?"

"Not just save her, but give her back her own memories."

"Thank you. I'll take you to her house."

Wilf went into the house first and distracted Donna while River and the Doctor sneaked in behind him.

The Doctor walked in and introduced himself with a false name

"Hi, I'm Doctor John Smith. Your grandfather tells me you've been having some headaches and strange dreams lately. I think I can help you."

River groaned as she hid in the hallway with Wilf at the Doctor's incredibly unoriginal false name.

"He's used that before?"

"Yes" River rolled her eyes.

"You gonna hypnotize me or something" Donna replied.

River sagged with relief, Donna believed the Doctor

"Yes, so if you'll just close your eyes..."

Once Donna's eyes closed the Doctor motioned River into the room. River gently laid her sleeping baby in Wilf's arms and walked into the room. The Doctor made a telepathic contact with Donna's mind and River quickly linked into the contact with the Doctor and Donna. For a few seconds the sensation was overwhelming, but the Doctor helped River contain it. Then River gently released herself from the link and sat on the couch while the Doctor unlocked Donna's own memories. Wilf sat down next to her and handed her back the baby. River was relieved Jonothon was still sleeping; she had been afraid he would wake up and begin to cry. Wilf watched anxiously, wringing his hands.

Finally the Doctor spoke. "You can open your eyes now, Donna."

Donna was looking in River's direction when she opened her eyes, stunned; her eyes widened "Professor Song?"

"She's my wife" The Doctor said softly.

"But how? I recognize you spaceman, even though you're not so pretty now. You did that change thing, right? It's later than when I was traveling with you…"

"Regeneration." The Doctor laughed "I let you keep a few things you picked up from me during the time you were 'Doctor Donna', as you said. I wanted to make sure you understood that I had regenerated, and yes, it is later for me, I'm the 11th now."

"But-"

"The Doctor and I had mixed up timelines for quite a while." River answered "He first met me as his 10th self, while for me that was much more recent."

"But you, the Doctor said-"

"A lie of omission to save him. Simply put, I had a plan for survival, he didn't. My plan worked. Our time lines finally synched up after the Library, and now we have a child." River knew she'd left out many details, but that was the gist of what she felt comfortable to speak of. The important thing was they'd saved Donna.

The Doctor looked relieved, River had told the truth, in essence, so neither of them had to lie to Donna and Wilf. Lying didn't bother him that much, but he knew it did River.

"You have a family again, then, good." Donna looked at the Doctor.

"Yes." The Doctor couldn't hold back a sad expression, knowing he would soon have to part again from River and the baby. He hadn't felt the warning sensation yet. Being so close to where he'd last seen Clara, even though it was over two years earlier, made him nervous. Plus Amy and Rory were alive in this present time in their personal time lines, traveling with him after their wedding, along with a tiny third passenger… his expression shifted to a slight smile as looked at his wife.

River watched the play of expressions on her husband's face and guessed where his thoughts were going; she smiled back at him, and then playfully gave him a wink. It was late September of 2010 and she knew where her parents were and where she was at that time…

Donna had come over and was gazing at the baby fondly. "What's its name?"

"Jonothon Song. He's almost 8 weeks old."

"I hope Shaun and I can have kids. I'd like to have two, boy and a girl. I'm, uh forty now, though and we've been married 6 months…"

"It took a while for me the first time too."

Donna smiled, "So it just has to be woken up or something?"

"Something like that, at least for me."

"First time?" The Doctor looked surprised

River smirked. "The Tardis informed me at breakfast, when I was reading that archeological article, that I'm one week pregnant."

The Doctor pouted. "She didn't tell me."

Everyone but the Doctor laughed.

"Looks like you're making up for lost time Doctor." Wilf said with a smile.

"No one is on my side" the Doctor grumbled, but then he smiled and shook his head bemused. It kind of was that, making up for lost time. He hated having to leave River even more now. But it was important for safety's sake.

River wondered what kind of warning they should pass along about Trenzalore. She could feel it was time to leave, but they shouldn't leave Donna and Wilf in the dark about it. It was quite possible one or both could end up there. Donna was particularly likely of the two, but there was a risk even for Wilf.

"Donna, Wilf. River and I came here for another reason; we have to tell you something."

"Warn you." River saw the strain on the Doctor's face and took over.

"Of what?" Donna and Wilf both said.

"There's a place called Trenzalore and a saying, concerning the Doctor." River took a deep breath; it wasn't exactly easy for her either to speak of this.

"A bad one, from your expressions."

"Yes. Perhaps it's easiest to start with the saying-" River started

A grim faced Doctor spoke "Silence will fall when the question is asked. On the fields of Trenzalore, at the fall of the Eleventh-"

Donna and Wilf gasped.

"When no living creature can speak falsely or fail to answer, a question will be asked, a question that must never be answered. The first question, the oldest question in the universe, the one I've been running from all my life, Doctor who?" The Doctor turned away and walked out the door toward the Tardis, not being able to bear to see the reactions of Donna and Wilf.

Donna and Wilf looked stunned, trying to take in what those words had meant. River stood up and gently told them the last information that had to be shared. "We had to make sure Donna was safe. The Doctor and I can feel Trenzalore is getting close. We are afraid the Doctor's companions could be taken to Trenzalore as well. The risk to your life is gone now, Donna, but emotionally you can still be hurt. If you end up at Trenzalore you will see things about the Doctor that will frighten you and worse. Things he's run from for so long."

"You'll help him, right, save him?" Donna asked.

"Yes, when I am able."

"How long have you know about this Trenzalore?"

"A long time."

"I want to help him too."

"Thank you, Donna, maybe you can, maybe we all will. That may be what can help him the most- if we still care after we know all the worst about him. I have to go; he'll want to leave now."

"And he needs the two of you right now, most of all."

"Yes."

River walked into the Tardis and saw the Doctor was sitting alone, in the dim light away from the console. The look on his face was very like in Manhattan after they had lost Amy and Rory. This time she walked over to him and sat in his lap.

The Doctor looked startled, but then touched her hair, then leaned over and kissed their baby on his forehead. River slid her arm around his back and let the baby lay in her lap, with the Doctor cradling an arm around their son.

After a few minutes like this the Doctor was able to manage a weak smile and whisper "Let's get you home. I can fly her this time." Then his smile got stronger "You lot are my passengers this time, no helping River."

"Alright husband, but if you get me home late I'll be mad." She stood up, changing the hold on her son to rest in her arms. Then obediently, she sat back down in the chair.

"More mad, you mean." He gave a laugh and started the Tardis engines.

River rolled her eyes.

When they arrived the Doctor showed her the time coordinates.

River gave him a gentle kiss. "Just two hours after we left this morning. Not bad."

His arms tightened around her. "Can't bear to leave you, but I have to."

"I know. I'll miss you terribly. Remember to jump back in time and take care of me while I'm recovering from the Library, honey."

"Already have it plotted in. Even though you'll be unconscious, it will give me more time with you."

"Too bad I was, wish I could have been a bit more lucid. I'd like to have that time too."

"Maybe you were a bit, but were so out of it, you thought you were dreaming."

"I hope so. At least we'll be able to sort of talk to each other some more before you must go."

"I'll try to sneak away whenever I can and see you."

"Good! You better! I want you here when our next one is born. "

"I want to be here for that the most of all."

They kissed again. Then River handed him the baby and let the Doctor say his goodbye to Jonothon.

"You be a good boy, don't fuss too much when mum is teaching her class. It might be archeology, but your mum thinks that's an important subject." The Doctor winked mischievously at his wife.

River sighed and rolled her eyes. He never would give up twitting her about his opinion of archeology.

The Doctor handed the baby back to River, and they exchanged another kiss. He pulled back with a hint of a bemused smile "I suppose it's time to reduce the number of psychopaths on this Tardis to one again."

River smiled lopsidedly. "Whenever and wherever you can, come to visit. Maybe we can even take a short trip together again soon."

"I'd like that."

"Me too."

They both took a deep breath. Neither actually said goodbye. River walked out of the Tardis and stood on her back porch until it disappeared.


	9. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At last, the chapter I've been eager to write since I started this story- the Doctor caring for River after the Library. Back to forward in time after this chapter.

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 8

The Doctor’s Rescue of River

“There she is. Thank you Sexy, for getting me here a bit earlier than she thought.”

The Doctor stepped out of the Tardis and scanned his sonic over his semi-conscious wife.

“Doctor?” River’s eyelids fluttered open briefly, then she drifted back into semi-consciousness- in agony from her injuries.

“Yes, I’m here. You’re very hurt, some surface burns on your upper body, some internal burns around your throat and bronchial tubes, some minor damage to one nerve center of your brain. Looks like I can lift and carry you without causing any more damage though. It might hurt a bit when I lift, I’m sorry.”

The Doctor winced at her moan of pain when he picked her up. He cradled her in his arms, her upper body against his chest.

The Tardis cloister bell alarm was almost unbearably loud when the Doctor carried River in. The medical bay had been moved by the Tardis so that it was right beside the console. The Doctor secured River on the bed and let the Tardis take over her treatment as he took them into the vortex. Once the Tardis was stabilized within the vortex he hurried back to the medical bay.

“I know she’s mostly recovered by Manhattan, and the baby turns out to be unharmed, but show me.” He whispered.

The Tardis hums, then scrolls up a medical report on the monitor.

“Artron energy is healing her injuries almost as fast as it does me, the baby was completely unharmed and getting healthier by the second. Your mum doesn’t even know about you yet for sure, hmm, won’t till after Manhattan, me, I won’t know about you until less than a day before you are born, but hello” The Doctor laid his hand over where the tiny baby was growing in River’s uterus. Then he sighed and looked at her face. “Wish I could take that torn up suit off you River, but it’ll have to wait until you do that, since you remember that part.”

“You’re here.” River whispered groggily and smiled as she briefly regained consciousness.

The Doctor watched her still drifting from unconsciousness to semi-consciousness while the Tardis cared for her. “Had to get here while you were still outside, wasn’t going to let you suffer, especially after you sacrificed so much for me. You keep doing that for me. Yet, you won’t let me give anything back without getting angry at me. River, it can’t always be you giving and me taking. I’ve let you do that far too long. Maybe you are starting to understand this though. You didn’t get mad when you realized I’d done this- especially when I promised no more regeneration energy to heal you. But I wanted to so much… seeing you laying there hurt and in so much pain. Then there’s the other pain, the type I’ve inflicted on your psyche… how can you love me? I’m not a good man, much less the best you’ve ever known.”

“You are a good man.” River looked at him cleared eyed.

“No, River, I’m not. “ He didn’t know how long this moment of full consciousness would last, but he wanted her to see just how much better a person she was than him. He should be the one giving all the time to make up for all those centuries of taking from everyone.

“So many in the universe think you are, including me.”

“And just as many think I’m a monster.”

“No, very few do.”

“Too many. I’ve essentially committed genocide, River, more than once, and that’s before Trenzalore.”

“I know, remember?”

“You know those stories, the ones you heard from that woman-”

“Kovarian.”

“Yes. Those stories are true.” The Doctor looked full of self-loathing.

“Somewhat, but always distorted to make you look far worse than you really were.”

“Were they River?”

“Yes, they were.”

“Do you know that for sure, or are you letting love blind you?”

“Not letting my feelings for you blind me. I’m not a naïve young girl anymore, my love.”

Her eyes fluttered closed again and she drifted back into unconsciousness. He knew she wouldn’t really remember this, but subconsciously it may have been there in Manhattan. He understood her reactions to him there a bit better now. The kind of bitter and depressed vibe he got from her there, it had confused him then. Some came from her fears about Trenzalore, he knew. Nothing to be done about that he mused sadly. He’d do something about the rest, heal the hurt he’d inflicted on her. Staying with her, caring for her while he could, that had made her happy. The parting had been sad, but he seemed to have fixed the bitterness of her hidden pain, at least a bit. That’s what to do, visit as much as he could, maybe an adventure or two as well! He smiled.

The Tardis hummed again.

“Done what you could. Okay, thank you Sexy. She’ll heal up the rest of the way, I’m sure.” He sighed unhappily, having to lay her down in her yard still in the ruined spacesuit. It was what she remembered though. He made sure he placed her a meter closer to her door than she had originally been. A little thing, but something. He cloaked the Tardis and stayed inside silently. He watched her struggle to her door, unlock it, then collapse in the doorway.

“Oh, she didn’t make it as far as she remembered, Sexy. I’ll have to help her out again.” He left the Tardis cloaked. The Doctor cradled his wife against his chest again. Not so worried this time, she’d be fine, just needed a bit more help. He lay her down on the couch, then waited quietly in the smaller downstairs bathroom. The next time she made it up the stairs and partly got the ruined spacesuit off, before she collapsed again. “Now I can finally get that thing off her.” He muttered.

“Doctor?” She looked at him glassy eyed and cuddled against him just as he got the spacesuit off of her.

“Shh, go back to sleep, I’ll take care of you.” He felt ashamed of his arousal.She might have been clad in just knickers and bra and curled against his body, but she was still healing and not truly conscious.

“Okay.” She smiled and drifted off into unconsciousness again. He carried her to her bed and put her under the covers.

Then he hurried back to the Tardis and found the new nightgown she showed him during his last visit. He smiled, it originally had been part of a wedding anniversary gift to her. He’d forgotten about it, and had bought something else on that anniversary. He had uncovered it while looking for something else. It had been after she left after Manhattan, and seeing it had cut him to his hearts. He had thought maybe he’d never see her again in her personal timeline… Oh, one or two things in Manhattan had made him wonder if she was telling him she’d survived it, but he couldn’t dare let himself believe it fully. Too devastating if it was wrong. He’d pushed the nightie into a bag and shoved it inside a drawer. But now there was absolute proof. His hearts danced with joy.

He knew why he’d chosen that nightie, rather than one of the ones she’d worn before and kept in the Tardis. She so seldom wore anything red, but it looked so wonderful on her- everything did, but red was spectacular. In, fact he’d never seen her in red until he bought her a different red nightie- the one he gave her on the first night she was in Stormcage. The one he held in his hands now was the color of the red velvet cake they’d shared on their 5th wedding anniversary. It was a plush velvet-like material, with a dark red silk lining. He knew River tended to like glamorous looking sexy clothes, so the nightie was ankle length, with flowing long sleeves and with a cleavage emphasis that looked suggestive, not smutty. There was a thin white silk robe with a fake feathered collar she could wear over it in the bag too, but he knew that gift would come later, after Jonothon was born.

It would be well nigh impossible enduring the time until he could see her again, and his son…. For now though, he had one last deed to help out his wife. He carefully moved the Tardis ahead six days. Then he let himself back into her home. Seeing her simply fast asleep, not unconscious was soothing. He gently put the nightgown on her, pulled the covers back up, and kissed her on the forehead. “See you soon, dearest wife.”

Inside the Tardis he stared at her home with longing in his hearts. “Don’t be jealous, Sexy, it’s not the house but who’s in it.” The Tardis made a sympathic noise. “That’s right she’s yours too. Well, we’ll be back for her, never fear.” He grinned, “We’ll have another to add to our family when we come back! Can’t wait to see him or her, can you?”

The Tardis made a happy noise and the Doctor spun around the console with a bounce in his steps as he took it into the vortex.


	10. Chapter 9

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 9

“Hi honey, I’m home!” The Doctor grinned.

“Almost… missed…the birth this time.” River gasped out during a contraction.

“Oh River, I’m so sorry! You should have gone to the hospital, not waited for me. Afraid it’s too late to give you the medicine this time.”

“Figured as much” She grimaced with pain. “Didn’t go to the hospital…because I knew you’d make it.”

“Barely. Where’s Jonothon?”

“At a friend’s house. Thought seeing his mother give birth might be too traumatic, what with the blood and all.”

The Doctor nodded. Then scooped her up in his arms and strode into the Tardis.

“Sexy, you should have got me here sooner. River’s almost ready to have the baby right now.”

The Tardis made an apologetic noise

“It’s okay… he still made it in time” River said soothingly.

“Afraid, at this point, we’re down to something that will take the edge of the pain, more like 21st century Earth.”

“It’ll do.”

An hour later Amelia Song was being cradled in her father’s arms while an exhausted River slept.

“Look at you.” he whispered “My beautiful little girl, named for your grandmum, Amelia Pond. River will tell all about her. Afraid I can’t stay very long this time, so we’ll have to spend this time together. Too bad your mum is too tired right now, but it gives us father and daughter time, hmm?

The newborn made a noise.

“What do you mean it’s silly, bow ties are cool.”

When River awoke, she was alone in her own bed, and Amelia was ensconced in the Doctor’s baby cot in her bedroom. Hanging from her bedside bookshelf was a silver broach of a flower bud on a red velvet ribbon. Threaded through the ribbon was also a note. She smiled and carefully detached her husband’s letter from the necklace.

“Dearest Melody/River, and you are to me, very dear, and our little Songs too. Speaking of songs, Amelia really likes Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t she Lovely”. She quite liked when I sang it to her, perhaps she’ll like you to sing it too. I know how much you like Stevie Wonder. I thought Amelia would like his songs too, and she does. I didn’t think about a special song for Jonothon when he was born. If you know his favorite song tell me next time. I will try to make it back soon, while Amelia is still a baby. Sorry I couldn’t stay this time, like last time. Envious of your colleagues who will see so much more of our children than I will. I wish we could all travel together on the Tardis. Will you someday? After… well, you know after what… I want us to have those “nights” together again too. They weren’t out of guilt you know, well, not completely. Know it was also because of what you mean to me. You mean so much to me, my amazing wife. Your Thete/Doctor”

The Doctor showed up again two months later.

“Look! All the Songs together!” He shouted with joy, stepping out of the Tardis onto River’s back yard. It was a warm and sunny weekend morning, so Jonothon had been “exploring” and bringing back to his mother the various “treasures” he’d found.

“Da!” Jonothon raced up to his father, his face bright with joy.

The Doctor kneeled down and threw his arms around his son. “You remembered me!”

“I made sure, my love.” River smiled tenderly at the joyous reunion, cradling a sleeping Amelia in her arms.

“You want to see inside my house, Jonothon?” The Doctor looked back at his wife, making sure she was okay with this. River nodded with a faint smile.

“How come you have it look so weird on the outside? Was Jonothon’s first response to seeing the interior of the Tardis.

“Well, that’s new.” The Doctor laughed. Then he answered the question. “It got stuck that way.”

“Ask mum, bet she can fix it. Mum can fix anything!”

River chuckled.

River and the Doctor cuddled in his bed after a slow and tender reunion lovemaking. Jonothon and Amelia slept in the nursery the Tardis made for them in a room nearby.

“If only we could stay this way…”

The Doctor sighed sadly, and ran his fingers through those wondrous curls that sprang from her head almost as if magic did exist.

A month later River was telling Kirpa the news she was pregnant again. “Oh Kirpa, you were right. It’s just like with your sister and her Time Agent husband.”

Kirpa chuckled and patted River on the hand, “I told you so.”

The next time River saw the Doctor, Amelia had just turned 2 and Jonothon was almost 6. River was three quarters of the way through her third pregnancy, right at the end of the ‘sexy pregnant lady’ stage, and about ready to go into “what a whale!” stage, she snarked to herself. River could tell by the obvious desire in his eyes, he definitely agreed with the “sexy pregnant lady” opinion.

“River” he said, deeply aroused. He drew her into an embrace.

“Oh, definitely we’ll have that later, my love.” She responded huskily.

“Yes. Later.” The Doctor shook off the spell of desire that just seeing River had created. “How long this time?”

She sighed. “almost two years.”

He sighed in return. “Do they even know their father now?”

“I told you last time, I made sure they would. I’ll wake them. I doubt if they are asleep anyway” She grinned, then shouted upstairs “Your daddy’s here, come see him!”

Sure enough, within seconds both children were pounding down the stairs, shouting with joy. They both literally threw themselves at their father. He grunted slightly at the double impact, but grinned at River and she winked back.

“All the Song family together again! You know what that means!”

“What?” Jonothon and Amelia chorused.

“Time for an adventure!”

The children giggled excitedly, caught up in their father’s charm.

River smiled “Okay, but nothing with running for our lives, understand?”

“I promise, wife! In fact, I know just the place. I’ve missed several anniversary and birthdays all around. How about a special concert in New York City in 1972. Starring John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack and Sha Na Na? “

“The One to One concert?”

“Yes!”

“I agree, let’s go.” Her eyes danced with happiness. She’d always secretly longed to have seen that concert.

The Doctor grinned and spun toward the console. It felt almost like back when it was River and himself along Amy and Rory, but happier, a family of his own in the Tardis again! He just knew River would immediately say yes when he told her where. He was so happy he was right, he let River fly the Tardis. It gave him time to play with the children. One last bit of joy before Trenzalore. He’d tell River about that afterward, he wouldn’t ruin this moment of happiness that they next time they saw him it would be at Trenzalore.

There was an excited vibe throughout Madison Square Garden as they made their way to first upper level seats. Thanks to the Doctor they got the best seats still available. Jonothon and Amelia picked up on their mother’s absolute joy and excitement and were excitedly chattering and asking questions up to when the concert started.

It was midway through “Instant Karma!” that River spotted them. Her parents, Amy and Rory. She almost cried out their names. They were so much older than when she’d seen them in Manhattan in 1938, but there was no doubt it was them. River gently tapped her husband’s arm. He turned toward her, and quickly she leaned her forehead so it touched his.

“Telepathic conversation, River? What’s going on? Did you spot something dangerous?”

“Not dangerous, wonderful. Look 12 rows up and two to the left..”

“Amy…”

“And Rory… yes.”

“Oh River! I thought…”

“Me too. But remember what Amy said in the afterward- not you’ll never see us again, but you won’t see us again for a long time. She must have written that after this night. I was never sure when my note asking her to write an afterward for you actually got to her. All I knew It was some time after the novel manuscript did.”

“Go, River, go to your parents. I’ll follow behind with the children.”

River broke the telepathic connection and climbed up the twelve rows. Just as the cheers ebbed after the song ended, River called out to her parents “Amy, Rory, mum, dad…”

“River!” Amy cried, as Rory stood there stunned.

“Oh look Rory, our daughter is going to have a baby! We have a grandchild!”

The audience members nearby grumbled at the loud old lady.

River grinned. “Actually, mum, this is my third.”

Amy started to shout excitedly again, and Rory good naturally put his hand lightly over her mouth to muffle the racket.

Amy ripped his hand away and glared at her husband “This is our baby, our daughter, we thought we’d never see again!”

“I know Amy, but let’s not annoy everyone here to see the concert.”

Amy grumbled, then her eyes widened in shock “Doctor..”

“Oh my Amy Pond, how I’ve missed you. And Rory, are you really happy here, so far away from your home?”

Amy and Rory shared a briefly but significant look with River. River looked back with understanding, some things weren’t meant to be known by the Doctor, just the three of them. She knew without even hearing it from them.

“We’ve missed seeing you of course.” Amy smiled “ Missed all our family, but Rory and I are content. So long as we had each other, that was always enough. “But now getting to see you again, my long lost daughter, and these grandchildren… Thank you, Doctor.”

Rory merely nodded.

“Mum, Dad” River felt a great burst of happiness inside to say those words she’d only been able to say a few times in her life, “This is Jonothon, he’s almost 6 years old, and this is Amelia, she just had her second birthday.”

Amy’s eyes teared up, knowing that River had named her daughter Amelia.

“And Dad, come here, I best whisper this.” Once Rory was leaned over toward her, River whispered in his ear “This one’s another boy and no matter how much the Doctor might complain, I’m calling him Rory.”

Rory’s eyes widened, he smiled and gripped her hand. “Thank you, daughter.” He whispered back.

River felt her own eyes starting to tear up, he’d called her daughter for the first time.

“What did you say, I just know it was about that one you haven‘t had yet, please tell your mother too, Melody.” Amy pleaded.

“I’ll tell her, okay?” Rory stated.

Rory returned to his wife and whispered what River had said. Amy grinned at her daughter.

“Hey, I’m the father, what are you keeping from me, wife?”

River giggled and obligingly whispered it in his ear. The Doctor muttered about how children should be allowed to pick their own names. River rolled her eyes.

“Rory and I have someone we’d like to introduce to you.” Amy smiled. “This is our adoptive son, Anthony.” She pointed to a wide eyed young man with straight brown hair.

“So they really weren’t just stories? Oh, wow. Uh hi!”

“Hello.“ River gave young man a gentle but warm smile. She was glad her parents had chosen to adopt and raise a child.

“Anthony Pond! Hello!”

“Williams, it’s Anthony Williams.” Anthony said correcting the Doctor’s mistake.

River thought it she might give her parents and adoptive brother an explanation why the Doctor always made that error. “Gallifrey was matrilineal. That’s why he’s always called you Ponds. More than any other companions you‘ve been his family, even more so after I married the Doctor.” River left it unsaid, but that was the reason why when they’d lost not just Rory but Amy as well, it was a blow the Doctor had almost not recovered from.

“Giving away my secrets, wife?” The Doctor mock scolded and smirked.

“Oh.” Amy, Rory and Anthony chorused.

“My children all have the family name Song, because I’m Professor River Song.”

“But they could be Ponds too?” Amy asked.

“Yes.” The Doctor answers, “all the Ponds together again“ His smile was bright, but River and Amy as well saw the sadness in his eyes. The tone was soft not gleeful, Rory noticed that.

“Doctor, we were planning on going to a diner nearby after the show, want to join us?” Rory asked ,kindly.

“Yes! Please, Doctor? Amy pleaded.

A rapid fire range of emotions spilled across the Doctor’s face.

“Yes, of course we will.” River answered

The Doctor nodded wordlessly.

“Let’s go now. I know we’re missing the final number, but we’ll get out before the crowd crush.” Amy grinned.

About 15 minutes later they were seated at the diner.

Rory looked at River “We never forgot you. We went to this benefit concert because those children’s situation reminded us of you. You lived your first years at that awful place. We couldn’t help you but we could help those kids from Willowbrook. We not only bought tickets, we gave them a major donation.”

“Yes.” The Doctor said, “I did too. For the same reason. I didn’t want to say it because it would make you sad, River.”

“I-” River felt horridly embarrassed at the tears that started trickling from her eyes. Stupid, bloody pregnancy hormones. “Thank you.” she murmured and ducked her head.

Jonothon, seated beside her at the booth, threw his arms around her.

River cuddled him back, and took a calming breath. “Mum’s okay now. I’m not sad. Mum cries easy when she’s pregnant, okay?”

“Did you when it was me?”

“Uh huh. Almost anything, I think. A happy or sad scene in a movie, listening to a song I liked…” She smile fondly “once even when saw a can of custard on the grocery shelf.”

“Custard?” Jonothon laughed.

“Your father loves it, dear.”

“Yep.” The Doctor grinnned, but melancholy was in his eyes.

Amy grasps his hand in sympathy. “Fish fingers and custard.”

“So that’s true, too?” Anthony looks wonderingly at the Doctor.

“Just about everything was.” Amy smiled.

“I thought it was just stories for me, when I was a kid.”

“People would have thought we were crazy, if we’d told you they were true. “

“She’s speaking from experience.” River adds. “I saw it happen.”

“You really grew up with them?”

“Yes. I was their friend Mels.” River felt tense about saying any more. She had no idea what, if anything Anthony knew about the Silence, the brainwashing and what had happened in Berlin. A big part of her hoped he knew nothing about her nightmare life and her greatest shame.

“But an accident happened on a trip to Berlin and you changed into River right?”

“Yes.” River said faintly.

“And the Doctor recognized you as the woman he loved, and after you got better and finished university you got married.”

“Yes.” she replied in an even fainter voice. Oh, how romantic Amy had made the story, the truth wasn’t nearly as pretty.

“That’s exactly what happened.” The Doctor lied emphatically and happily to Anthony. He turned to River and titled her chin up and kissed her on the lips. “How I wished it happened, River.” He spoke telepathically to her. Then he broke from the kiss and smiled at her.

River couldn’t help smiling back and clasping his hand. “Me too.” She thought back at him.

Amy felt a great wave of relief. Things were so much better between her daughter and the Doctor than they’d been the last time.

“You should come see their house.” Anthony grinned.

“Yes! Stay the night! Please say you will? It’s a huge house, lots of rooms!”

“Really?” River smiled, the little nest egg she’d put in place for them had paid off that well?

“Thanks to our daughter.” Rory looked at River warmly “We had a home already waiting for us, a messenger found us right after we found each other at Grand Central Station. Gave me a telegram saying to go to this bank-”

“We got there and were told we’d inherited a house and money from a very distant relative. The house was ours free and clear as was the money.”

“It was a bit much of a house for us at first, bit expensive to heat and all.”

“Oh sorry.”

“Not at all. We found out you’d made sure I was listed as a fully accredited medical Doctor. How you faked a 1938 accreditation I don’t know and don‘t need to hear, but I’m grateful.

River smiled.

“And the book you wrote, Melody Malone, everyone believed I wrote it. I gave me a career as a writer. I started writing children’s books, at first just altered versions of all of our adventures, but eventually I found I could write original stories too. Within ten years we had enough money to live at the house full time. Anthony hardly even remembers living above Rory’s office, and just being at the house during the summers. We built onto it once we had the money. Made it into this huge house for three people.” Amy grinned.

“It’s an amazing house! I had a huge playroom!”

“And more toys than some shops.” Rory grumbled good naturedly.

River understood, they’d indulged Anthony like the way they wished they could have done their daughter. Thankfully, Anthony hadn’t come out of that an overindulged and self-centered child. Considering her parents she could see how. She was glad Anthony knew about her though, no matter if it was in a better light than reality.

She’d probably done the same with Jonothon and Amelia, glossed over her parents’ flaws, made them almost fairy tale characters… The children were both taking this surprise meeting with complete aplomb, and meeting an uncle unknown to them as well. Anthony seemed a bit more obviously overwhelmed, but still, doing okay. Mum was completely taken by her namesake, and Amelia, the little charmer, was eating it up, every bit her father’s daughter. For his part Rory was looking nearly as taken in by Jonothon, and because of his quiet and bright nature he was charming his grandfather nearly as much. River turned to Anthony “I hope you don’t mind my children monopolizing your parents attention.”

Anthony shrugged. “Not at all. They’ll be the same way some day if I have kids.”

“I bet they will.”

River, the Doctor and the children ended up staying nearly a week at Amy and Rory’s home. Neither party wanted to end this last meeting they’d likely ever have, and one so much better than the other. But near the end of the week the Doctor woke River in their bed in the early hours of the morning. “River.” His eyes looked nearly as sad as they had in 1938 Manhattan. “We can’t stay longer, at least I can’t. But you might be able to. You brought your vortex manipulator with you, right?”

“Yes. But if you go, I and the children do as well.” Her answer was firm, brooking no argument.

The Doctor simply nodded in gratitude. He’d brought the Tardis to Amy and Rory’s house a couple of days ago, and managed to lose only a hour visiting time in the process.

River was proud of him. She’d let him go alone to retrieve the Tardis, and worried a bit he might lose track of time in the transit, but for him on his own he did pretty good. After he landed the Tardis he’d wheedled Amy and Rory into stepping inside it “one last time”. He’d behaved himself and hadn’t even begged them once to come along for “one last adventure”. Perhaps what happened in 1938 Manhattan, and the paradoxes that still tightly circled Amy and Rory forestalled him. Perhaps their age gave him hesitance as well, both nearly 70 now. Anthony had peered inside the Tardis from the doorway but walked no further into it. River wondered if Rory had given Anthony a few warnings about the Doctor as well, to be careful about walking into that big blue box… Maybe not all the tales he’d heard about the Doctor were as pretty as the one he’d been told about herself and the Doctor.

They waited until after nightfall to leave. Amelia drowsily cuddled in her father’s arms, while Jonothon held tightly onto his mother’s hand and tried bravely not to cry. He was old enough to understand he might never see his grandparents and uncle again.

The morning after their surprise reunion, Rory had taken Anthony with him on a mysterious shopping trip. He returned home with a Sony Umatic, the first videocassette recorder, just introduced the year before. Rory had been interested in purchasing one and trying it out, but the cost and weight of the machine had precluded that. But that all changed when his long lost daughter with her children and the Doctor arrived. River forbade the Doctor from touching the machine, and Rory’s glare further forestalled him. River though, helped Anthony and Rory set it up. Soon the machine was working and recording away.

Seeing her father had forgotten to buy the player in his excitement she, with Amy’s permission, borrowed her parents car , and with the Doctor in tow, drove back down to the city and purchased the player. River snuck the player in and set up the necessary connections to her parents TV.

Now on the evening of the departure Anthony was recording while his parents said their goodbyes to his sister, her husband and his niece and nephew.

Rory was proud of himself for holding back from crying. He’d cried like a kid when he held what he thought was his newborn daughter at Demon’s Run all those years ago, but he was strong and almost stoic this time, managing a little smile even as he hugged his grandchildren and his daughter. He’d even hugged the Doctor. He’d also caught a glimpse of a troubled look in his alien son-in-law’s eyes. “What’s wrong, Doctor?”

The Doctor looked chagrined and sighed, drawing him to the side. “We’re leaving because of me.”

“Why?”

The Doctor closed his eyes. “I made a mistake with the companion I picked after you two.”

“River didn’t stay?”

“She’s a professor, remember? Then there was the children too.”

Rory nodded, he understood now as far as his daughter not staying anyway. “What mistake did you make with the companion after us?” Rory looked concerned.

“I think she’s a trap set for me, there’s something not quite right about her, something too perfect to draw me in…”

“You haven’t done anything have you?”

“No! I’m married to your daughter, and a father again as well.”

“Good. I know River, under that role she sometimes plays, she’s gentle hearted and faithful, don’t hurt my daughter, Doctor.”

“Never in that way, I promise. Afraid I can’t swear I’ll never hurt her emotionally, not with where we are heading…”

“Does she know about that?”

“Yes. We’ve put in as much happy times together before that time though. But Rory, I haven’t told her this yet, didn’t want it to taint this happy time, especially not when this happened, but I think this the last time before the really bad thing happens.”

“Is this something Amy and I know about?”

“Not sure. Can’t remember. Did you hear anything about….Trenzalore…” The place name was barely a whisper.

“Yeah, something about your fall or something like that?”

“Yes.”

“Not going to ask you about how bad it will be. I can see well enough. But tell me one thing, since I’m guessing we won’t be there, will this be the end of the time you have with my daughter?”

“As 11 yes, but I think from the things I’ve seen, and River’s seen, she’ll be with me as 12. It’d be better too. I’ll be better to her than I’ve been as 11.”

“Okay. We better get back to them or you’ll be getting questions from River before you’ve even left here. Take good care of my daughter and my grandchildren.”

“Best I can, I promise.”

Amy’s goodbye was different this time from the last. While tears shone in her eyes like the last time, her voice was calm and clear. “You take care of each other, understand? Together or not at all, both of you. It’s called marriage.”

“Yes, mum I will.”

“I promise Amelia Williams,” The Doctor smiled at Amy and Rory, “to always try.” Then the Doctor looked over at Anthony. “Set that down and come over here. Like it or not you’re a Pond, come join the rest of us.”

Rory chuckled. “You heard your brother-in-law. Come here son.”

Anthony turned off the machine and gently set it down. As soon as he came in reach the Doctor gave him a tight hug. “Now you take care of them, understand Anthony Pond?”

“Yeah.”

River hugged him next. “I hope I can see you again some day, little brother. The children do as well.”

Amelia woke up and started wriggling and crying until she could get a last hug from her grandparents and her uncle, once she had that she cuddled up and fell back to sleep in her father’s arms.

Jonothon valiantly tried to stop his tears, but to no avail, he hugged his grandparents tightly and his uncle. When he reached his uncle, after the tight hug, Anthony said gently “Hey, maybe you’ll be grown up next time you see me and I’ll let you drive my car? How about that?”

“Yeah.” Jonothon smiled waveringly at his uncle.

River resolved to teach her son how to drive as soon as he was old enough, just in case.

After they left, Rory, Amy and Anthony watched the video of the visit many times. As technology changed Rory and Anthony updated the format. Anthony built a format conversation studio inside his parents home so the visit would remain a private thing just for the “Pond family”, and "Williams", he amended. Years later, when he met his grandfather Brian, he brought the video with him on a flash drive. He and Brian watched it together and let tears flow freely as Anthony told him of his granddaughter. A week later, River herself showed up with an infant Jonothon and told him her story. Brian didn’t tell River about the video or Anthony, something told him he mustn’t yet.

River thought on that first conversation with Brian and how immediately accepting he was of her and wondered now. She knew Rory hadn’t told his father about her, unlike Amy with Tabetha and Augustus. Rory spoke of that and apologized the first morning of the visit, shortly before he and Anthony went out to buy the video camera.

“I’m ashamed of myself now, River. Because of my indecision you missed out on yet another family connection you should have had. Amy made the right choice. At least they know you. Did you tell them about Manhattan 1938?”

“Yeah. They don’t like the Doctor much now. Not that they were ever too keen on him. Especially Tabetha.”

“But they’re okay with you?”

“Absolutely. Spoil their great grandchildren like crazy.”

Rory nodded with a purposeful look on his face. Shortly after that, he and Anthony went out and came back with the Sony Umatic.

River guessed Rory and Anthony kept updating the recording technology on the video. Anthony must have visited Brian after the date Amy and Rory disappeared and shown him the video. Brian had to have already knew who she was on the day she came to tell him the news about Amy and Rory and tell him who she was… She then realized with sadness that Anthony would have to be around her parents age in that video when he visited Brian. No time travel for him. The next time she visited Brian with the children she’d ask about Anthony. She wanted to know what happened to him. She’d love for the children to see their uncle too, even though it might be a bit sad for Jonothon and Amelia.

River glanced over to see Jonothon had finally drifted off to sleep like his younger sister had, even before they left 1972 New York. She looked up to see the Doctor looking in on the scene from the doorway, a sad longing on his face. She could guess why, her hearts clenched with anxiety. Trenzalore, time was up.

She walked over and put an arm around him drawing him close to her side. “I know, my love, you don’t have to say anything.”

“Good. Don’t want to.”

“I know, I know.” She kissed him on the cheek.

After a few minutes he said softly. “Think there’s enough time to drop you back home.”

“But you’ll be alone then…”

“Better I am when it happens for me. I want you to sleep too, if you can. Hopefully good ones about the last Pond family adventure, huh?”

“I’ll try.”

“I don’t tell you this near enough but…” he paused, then said aloud in Gallifreyan “I love you.”

“I love you too, Thete.”

“Melody.” The Doctor whispered, and kissed her softly by an ear.

Then turned away and walked toward the console. River took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly. He looked back and slowed his stride till they were walking comfortably together. “It’s called marriage” she murmured.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a chapter I'd pictured in basic form for months. I'm really glad I finally got to it. It was very draining to write, but in a good way.


	11. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Start of Trenzalore chapters

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 10

River Song’s home, 5160’s

The Doctor stayed for Amelia’s second birthday, but had to leave abruptly that evening, having only enough time for one last hug and kiss for the three of them.

After he left the crushing shadow of Trenzalore was so overwhelming, even Amelia felt it. She clung to her mother and whimpered. Jonothon was wide eyed with fear and he clutched his mother’s hand tightly.

“I know, I feel it too.” She cuddled her daughter and son, sitting on the couch. The feeling was so strong they all felt too frozen with it to move. River had turned on soft, soothing music but it wasn’t helping. The anxiety was keeping them all awake as well. She had hoped the music would be calming enough they would fall asleep, even if she couldn’t.

It was almost a relief when she felt the jolt of someone teleporting them as the security system of her home wailed.

Fields of Trenzalore, outside of time

River came to and with intense relief saw the children were still on each side of her. Then they came to and looked at her with confusion and fear. “This must be Trenzalore.” She said.

The Fields of Trenzalore might have been an interesting place to visit, had the situation been less awful. But now it was a dark and ominous place.

“Professor River Song?” A familiar voice called out in the eerie dimness.

“Donna Noble, is that you?”

“Yeah, grandfather is here too.”

“Are you both okay?”

“Yeah, what about you?” Wilf asked.

“The children and I are fine.”

“It brought them too?”

“Yes.”

“What is this place? Why are we here?” A mature woman’s voice called out unseen.

“Who are you?” River asked

“Susan Campbell. Did I hear that you are called Professor River Song?”

“Yes.”

An older woman with short salt and pepper hair emerged from the gloom. A bit short of breath she said, “There’s some kind of barrier, but it collapsed when I used this though.”

River could tell it was a sonic screwdriver. The woman used it on the barrier surrounding them and they were free. River and the children stepped outside of the space where they had been confined.

Then the woman hugged her around the shoulders “Hello Grandmother, I thought I’d never see you again!”

“Susan! You left Gallifrey with the First Doctor.”

“Yes!”

“So it’s really going to happen. You’re my granddaughter…” River smiled at Susan fondly.

“Yes!” Susan laughed. Then her expression turned worried “But what is this place and why are we here?”

Suddenly, there is blinding light on all sides, and as they shield their eyes a man strides to the center of the field. “This is Trenzalore!” He shouts with a manic glee. “You are here Susan, to see, like everyone here, what the Doctor truly is!”

River looked around the now visible field and quickly spotted her grandparents. She cautiously moved in their direction. Then she spotted Donna and Wilf and hesitated between her grandparents and them. Jonothon, Amelia and Susan halted as well.

“Oh well. May as well let the Doctor’s family and allies have a little reunion, before your husband arrives. Professor Song.” He dropped the energy fields around not just her grandparents, Donna and Wilf, but other companions that River only knew from the Tardis records.

“Husband?”

“He married?”

“He has a family”

“That pregnant woman is his wife?”

Donna shouted over the noise “Oi! Of course she’s his wife you morons! Listen sometime!”

River’s mouth quirked into a smirk. Trust Donna to react that way. She was so glad the Doctor and her plan worked and saved Donna, plus gave her back her own memories. Everyone else converged on River and her family. Donna clapped an arm over her shoulder before any of the other companions could reach them.

“I can make introductions for some of these people” Donna squeezed her shoulder in friendly reassurance. Then whispered in her ear “You weren’t kidding about just having to get things started Professor Song, on the third one already?”

River lightly blushed, but smiled “Yes.” She whispered back, “any luck on your side?”

“First positive ultrasound. Having my memories back and that, it’s been a good year for me, finally.”

That was all they had time to say before the other companions began bombarding River with questions. River noticed the Master was no longer showing any interest in them. He was walking toward a dark area of the field. River had a suspicion that was where the Silence and Kovarian were being held and was glad for the distraction of these strangers.

“Professor Song, this is Martha Jones and Mickey Smith, we had an adventure together with the 10th Doctor.”

“Did something happen to the Doctor?” Martha asked.

“Yes, do you know about the Doctor regenerating?”

“Yeah.” Mickey said, “I saw him as Nine and Ten.”

“He’s on Eleven now.” River said. “He met me for the first time as Ten. We married a while after he was Eleven.”

“How?”

“Oh, that’s a story that would take far too long to tell now.”

“But what is it about you that made him want to marry you?”

“Not sure, he just did.”

“Does he wear a bow tie and a tweed jacket?” River had to stare for a few seconds before she realized the thin, blonde, older woman was Jo Grant Jones. So the Doctor finally forgave her for running off, in love with an archeology professor, around forty years ago in Jo’s personal timeline.

“Yes, was he a thin man, with floppy brown hair, and a boyish face?”

“Yes!”

“That was my husband.” River grinned.

“He didn’t mention he was married to Sarah Jane and I. Said something about his companions being on their honeymoon.”

“Sarah Jane Smith?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t see her here.”

Jo looked sad. “She died of cancer recently, the Brigadier too. ”

“So did Liz Shaw.” A middle aged woman stated. River realized this woman was the Doctor’s young companion Ace. “We worked together in UNIT for a while.’

“I knew Liz Shaw. We worked in different departments in UNIT but I knew her in passing. I didn’t know she’d died. I haven’t been with UNIT for many years.” Jo replied.

River was noticed that if a companion’s death was recorded in the Tardis they were not here. That would be a strong reason why her parents weren’t at Trenzalore. Somehow the Master had discovered she hadn’t died in Library, since she was here. Or someone else could have hacked into the depths of the Tardis and seen the secret medical records that proved her survival from the Library, and the births of her children as well.

River had a sinking suspicion this had something to do with the newest companion of the Doctor. The Doctor suspected that that companion was some kind of trap laid to bring him to Trenzalore. The fact she and the children and her grandparents were here tended to give weight to that theory. If so, this new companion was even now drawing the Doctor toward Trenzalore. Since they were all here that must mean the Doctor would be here very soon.

No sooner had the thought entered her head than the distinctive sound of the Doctor’s Tardis was heard as it materialized.

As the doors opened River heard her husband’s voice, filled with sorrow. “So here we are Clara, where you’ve been leading me all this time, Trenzalore.”

The companion emerged from the Tardis first. She looked to be in her early twenties, brunette , petite, and pretty- in a generic doll-like fashion. The petulant look on her face wasn’t pretty though…

She looked around the people gathered on Trenzalore. “Oh look Doctor, it’s your old friends that you never talk about.”

The Doctor emerged, his face taut with sadness and anxiety, he looked like the weight of all of time and space was upon his soul, and perhaps it was. River thought.

His eyes caught hers “River.” He sighed her name.

“That pregnant cow is your wife? God, she’s old.”

A flash of anger crossed the Doctor’s face. “My wife is not a cow, Clara! Nor is she old, she’s centuries and centuries younger than me! She’s the most amazing person I’ve ever met. Something you’ll never understand! If not for her, you would have never met me! I would have been dead!”

Clara looked unimpressed, and walked toward where the Master was waiting. The Master smirked. “So pretty and such a mystery, wasn’t she, Doctor? Drew you right in, didn’t she? She knows how to manipulate romantic emotions too, you must be quite smitten with her by now.”

“No. The only woman I’m smitten with is my wife.”

“Oh too bad, looks like you failed at that one, Clara dear.”

Clara groused “You were wrong him falling for me, if I held back about traveling with him all the time, but acted all interested in him when I did. He was visiting and making babies with her,” Clara jabbed her thumb back in River’s direction with irritation. “when he wasn’t with me.”

The Doctor blushed and looked sheepish, then looked back at River and grinned. “Time can be rewritten.”

The Master laughed. “And never more so than with you two. Well, old friend, you’ve proven yet again how I must never underestimate you. And you, Professor Song, are a worthy partner indeed. Now though. you both face the test of Trenzalore. Your darkest secret revealed Doctor, and the monster within unleashed on all of time and space. Can you still love such a man Professor Song?”

“You know my childhood, certainly? You know what happened to me, what Silence tried to make into. I knew as a child all about the dark Doctor. Yet I still fell in love with him. How do you think I’ll be? He forgave me at my worst, I’ll do the same.”

“What about me?” Clara shouted. “I still brought him here, even though I didn’t get what I wanted out of this. Where’s my reward?”

The Master made an irritated sigh. “Tried to program that attitude out of the copies, but it always bled back in after a while.”

“Copies? You made copies of me?” Clara shouted.

“Humans, always shouting about this, that and the other. Clara, Clara, Clara. That’s all you’ve ever been, copies of something. The original human is gone.”

“You’re lying! I remember my parents!”

“She’s not a ganger.” the Doctor stated. “I ran a scan.”

The Master laughed mockingly. “You think I would use human technology? Surely, Doctor you mock me. I have materials far more sophisticated to make my tools.”

“A tool, you called me a tool?”

“It’s what you are Clara dear. A tool of mine, to get the Doctor here. It was quite entertaining to program a bit of ‘free will’ into you.”

“No!” Clara shouted “I’m real!” She stamped her foot.

“You grow tiresome, girl.” The Master said with annoyance. He waved his hand and an energy field surrounded her.

“Let me out! Right now!”

“Shut up, be glad I haven’t become annoyed enough to dispose of you now. You performed your job, your reward is life.”

“You said he’d fall in love with me!”

“I said he might. Now be quiet. Your job is done.”

“No I won’t!”

“You leave no choice” The Master deactivated the energy field, and pointed a sonic at Clara. This was not like the Doctor’s sonic. Clara dropped like a sack of potatoes and landed on the ground eyes wide open. Clearly she was dead. The Master waved his hand in dismissal “If you survive this Doctor, I’ll give you the last copy of her. She is far more annoying than I thought she would be. The copies are keyed to want to find you.”

The Doctor sighed. Another burden to take on and figure out a solution. “Please remove her directive to try to form a romantic bond to me. I’m married.”

“She a jealous wife?” The Master smirked.

“Husband who loves his wife.” The Doctor said with a flash of anger in his eyes.

The Master shrugged, if the Doctor survived Trenzalore, he might be magnanimous . “Done. Now Doctor, we know what we are here for. What you’ve been running from all your life.”

“My name, the real one.”

“Yes.” Then taking on the full commanding power of a time lord, he asked in Gallfreyian “What is your true name?”

River felt compelled to say what she knew was the Doctor’s true name at the same time the Doctor spoke it. Reality itself shifted and blurred and when it snapped back into place the Doctor fell to his knees and screamed in agony as he was thrown into regeneration.

The regeneration light was weak and distorted . Instead of a bright golden glow it was a sickly dull brownish grey, but still it grew bright and dense enough that the Doctor could not be seen. When it cleared two men knelt where there had been one. Neither looked well, but the one with a malicious look in his eyes looked the healthier of the two. He stood without a word or a look at anyone and stalked over to where the Silence and Kovarian were still imprisoned behind an energy field. The Master joined him and gleefully let him borrow the deadly sonic. Then the dark Doctor spoke. “For what you did across the galaxy, including Earth, and especially because of what you did to my companion Amy, and to my wife River Song, your sentence is death.”

Within seconds Kovarian and the Silence were all dead.

The other, weaker half Doctor called out, “River.”

She went to him.

“When the other me leaves here, offer to go with him, he won’t say no, you’re the only one he’ll listen to at all. Do whatever you can to minimize the death and destruction.”

“I will.” She kissed him softly on the forehead.

“Jonothon, Amelia stay with this version of your daddy, I have to help the other one.” The children nodded. River could see they were already traumatized by what they had witnessed. The others here as well, her grandparents and the companions. For her, while shocking, she’d seen him show hints of this side before. She knew the stories too, she knew what he would do.

When the dark Doctor passed within her reach on the way to the Tardis, she took his hand. He paused and looked at her. She looked back at him with an unreadable expression. He wordlessly acknowledged her with a slight nod, then with a firm grip back on her hand brought her along with him. She knew certain actions were “written in stone” but other things maybe she could avert. The way he acknowledged her, the look in his eyes, maybe the link with his better side wasn’t completely severed. That may be the way to save him. She would try.

　


	12. Chapter 11

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 11

To the universe, this dark Doctor, the Valeyard, was a terrifying monster- only Earth and a few places were largely spared. The Valeyard didn’t spare his earlier faces either, especially the Sixth and Seventh.

“Both needed a reminder of what I am inside them.”

“So that was what you were actually doing?

“Of course. I had to be properly taught about the Valeyard again.

“And what you did to those that had harmed your friends?”

“And you, wife. That was the vengeance they deserved, in the name of the Doctor.”

She looked at him wordlessly, but for this one, she hid nothing of her emotional pain. It was the only way to reach him. This form was a psychopath with a rigid moral code about the behavior of anyone but his current self, and his loved ones. Yes, this aspect of the Doctor could love, and far more openly than the Doctor usually did. He was very overt with his all passions… including the type he had for her. No furtive, quicksilver expressions of lust with this one. She lost track of where, when and how they shagged, even with her state of late pregnancy. In fact, her pregnancy just caused his lust for her to burn that more intensely.

What she said about the pain he was creating through the universe and how that hurt her, did seem to get to him, finally. While they awaited the birth of this child, they spoke, much like they had while waiting for their first child to be born.

“You hate this me.” The dark Doctor looked at her sadly.

“No, I don’t.”

“Why? The other parts of me hates this me.”

“You didn’t hate me in Berlin; how could I hate you? I’m just upset you did something so stupid and dangerous. To lock away this you in a mental prison, gave this you so much power and hate that you split into two half people when your name was spoken. You can’t survive without becoming one person again.“

“The other me will never accept this part.”

“He will.” River’s tone was stern, brooking no argument.

“Is that what you’ll say?”

“In part. There will be no ‘killing’ you off either. You have to accept your own darkness as a part of you.”

“How were you able to?”

“Accepting my darkness wasn’t hard after Berlin. Accepting that it wasn’t all that I was; that was the surprise. But my mother always knew. My father too; although Rory wasn’t as vocal about it as Amy.”

“My fault. You suffered so much, and I’ve hurt you again and again. How can you love me?”

“Don’t think I didn’t wonder sometimes- Byzantium, Utah-“

“Demon’s Run.”

“Not intentional there, sweetie, so not that time…”

“You forgive me for that, even though that was the start of your torture?”

“And the place of my mother’s, yes, I do.”

His eyes widened in shock. “River… how can I ever be worthy of that kind of love from you?”

“You are. To me you are.”

“Not possible. I could never…”

“Yes, you do. You want to know how?”

“How?”

“Reunite with your other part of yourself, accept both are you, and never, ever shut any part of yourself away again. It never works to do that, especially for time lords. Be yourself around me; hide nothing. I know you trust me more than anyone you ever have known. Trust me to know I want to love every bit of you, good or bad, and I can always help.”

“I’ll try.”

She nodded. “It’ll be hard for you, but you know I’m strong enough to help you.”

He nodded and embraced her.

“Oh” she gasped. “I believe our second son is ready to be born…”

A short time later, Rory Song took his first bleary eyed vision of the universe.

After River recovered they headed back to Trenzalore. As soon as she stepped out of the Tardis, Jonothon and Amelia ran to her side.

“Mum!” they cried and threw their arms around her.

She smiled tenderly at them, then said “This is your little brother, Rory Song.”

“You were gone that long, mum?” Jonothon looked surprised.

“Uh huh. The Tardis is a time machine, remember?”

Jonothon and Amelia nodded. River knew this was the first time they would get some idea what time travel could mean to a person’s timeline. When they had traveled back and seen their grandparents Jonothon understood he was living in the past. But it had been less than a week, so, it would have been a vague thing. What made it concrete now was seeing his mother cradling his newborn brother. When he last saw her a few hours ago, she was still pregnant and a few months from giving birth. It made it clear for Amelia too, as young as she still was.

The dark Doctor strode over to the Master. “You know what happens now. Your role in this is done. I lived, so hand over that last copy of Clara, free from anything extra you programmed into her mind and go.”

The Master sighed. “If you insist, but not until you finish the regeneration into 12. That was the bargain.”

“Fine.” The dark Doctor turned and looked grim faced at his other self.

“River, explain to this idiot part of me what he needs to do.”

“She doesn’t have to explain; I know.”

“Do you?”

“Yes.”

“Well, then enlighten me on what you know.”

“I have to take you back as a part of me.”

“That’s not all. See, she needs to explain. I don’t have the patience for it.”

River, baby in arms, looked up at the more familiar version of her husband “You’re going to have to accept the parts of yourself that you shut away that turned into him.” She glanced at the dark Doctor. “Accept it, and don’t try to shut it away again. That’s why you would always drift into darkness when you were alone too long. You could suppress it when you traveled with others, but when you were alone it became an internal battle. The longer you were alone the stronger what you suppressed became. You have to accept it as a part of you, but in balance with the parts of yourself you know others like. I was just the opposite. Deep down I believed no one would ever love someone so bad, so I held back that part. Only Amy and Rory saw bits of that me. But in Berlin the Tardis and you taught me I was loved… not just the glimmers I got from Amy and Rory as Mels, but full blown love, in spite of what I was. Do you know what that did to me?”

He smiled tenderly, in spite of the physical pain. “I believe so.” He said softly.

“What you said to me in Utah, I mean it as much as you did “You are always and completely forgiven. And –“

“I’ll do it River, just one request though, come here. There’s something I want to say that’s just for you to hear.” She took his hand and let him draw her in close. Their foreheads touched and then they were together in each other’s minds. “When I regenerate, please help me.”

“I will.” She said tenderly. “Could you stay with me more? It would be easier to help you if you did. I know you’ll have to travel sometimes… So will I, although much less than you…” River smiled at him fondly.

“I really want to. Maybe that will help my restlessness. But River, I’m going try something I’ve never thought I could control. Regeneration. I saw you were able control it to a degree, even being just half time lord. It made me wonder if maybe I could, after all. All the other time lords I knew, could. My first regeneration happened off of Gallifrey; I’d gone so long in that body without traveling in the vortex, that it was breaking down. I was dying of ill health. I didn’t even think of trying. My second regeneration was forced- all control taken from me. I was too sick from radiation poisoning to have any thoughts other than the agonizing pain as I died on my third. I rarely had time to consider anything… The few times I did have time, I just thought I couldn’t. I just had a genetic defect. I didn’t even bother to try, just went along for the ride. I enjoyed the randomness, to tell you the truth.”

“Can I help you in any way? Maybe there’s something someone with even half timelord DNA can do? Make the regeneration more stable or something?”

“Not that I know of. Just you being here is better than I’ve ever had.”

“Someone that loves you, who intimately understands regeneration?”

“That yes, but also someone who means more than anything to me, being here…”

They shared a tender kiss, then mentally stepped back from each other as they broke the contact.

“Finally.” The Master sighed with mild annoyance.

River winked at the Doctor.

He smirked back. “See you around Professor Song.”

“Goodbye sweetie.”

He nodded and reached out his hand to his dark self. Moments after contact, the regeneration began.

River stayed close by, but far enough back that only the outer edges of his regenerative energy came close to her and the children. When the light cleared neither River or Susan were surprised, but she heard several stunned reactions from the former companions.

“The Doctor’s a girl?”

“How can the Doctor be a woman?”

“Timelords change gender?”

River smiled. “Time lords can change age, height, body build, hair color and texture, eye color, race, and gender. We can even take on the appearance of a few other humanoid species. The last is more rare. It can happen if our family’s ancestry had some mixture with that species, though.”

“You’re a timelord, then?”

“How can you be a time lord?”

“I thought the Doctor was the last one.”

The Master laughed. “No, he’s not the last one. I’m here. We both survived the time war. As for the Doctor’s lovely wife, she would probably give you the edited version, just telling you she’s half time lord. She won’t give you the sordid details, will you? And then there are those children of hers. The Doctor is their father. And the woman who calls herself Susan Campbell, she’s the Doctor’s granddaughter-”

“The details are simply the result of my conception on the Tardis while it traveled through the vortex. My parents chose to spend their honeymoon traveling with the Doctor....”

“The Doctor had a married couple as companions?”

“So that’s why he used to say no married couples; what changed his mind?”

“My parents. He cared deeply for both of them. It was his idea to offer them a honeymoon trip on his Tardis. They happily accepted.”

“So if any couple-“

“It’s as I knew she would. Professor Song is leaving out many details. Perhaps she doesn’t want the Doctor’s friends to know about her kidnapping and how she was-“

“Enough Koschei! Stop tormenting my wife!” The Doctor strode back over to the Master and glared.

“Oh, Thete has claws.” The Master laughed and stared down at the Doctor.

“So does the Doctor’s wife.” River moved swiftly and had the Master in a tight headlock before he could respond. “Now do as you promised. Give us the last copy of Clara, and leave. Don’t even think about pulling a stunt like this again, or you’ll find out just how thorough and deadly my programming can be, since the Doctor helped me take control of it many years ago.”

The Master grinned. “You truly are the perfect wife for the Doctor, no matter what form. I’ll go as promised, and even leave you the Clara copy, with romantic focus deleted. You’ll find her at a place you’ve both visited twice, crossing your timeline in three forms, Professor Song.”

The Master jerked out of her headlock and disappeared.

River and the Doctor looked at each other “Lake Silencio”. They groaned.

　


	13. Chapter 12

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 12

“Not my idea of my first trip as Twelve.”

“Nor of my first travel with you as Twelve.”

“How about taking all of us home first, is that better?” Donna stated bluntly.

“Oh, yes, immensely better!” The Doctor replied, happily.

River nodded. They’d drop off everyone, then she and the children would travel to Lake Silencio to find where the Master had hid the last copy of Clara. River fervently hoped that it wouldn’t involve another astronaut suit, in any context. She loathed them with a passion, worse than even 11’s dreadful fez obsession. She was uneasy about leaving the children alone, even in a locked and cloaked Tardis, but she wasn’t about to let the Doctor search for Clara alone. Who knew what they’d have to deal with before they got to where the girl was being held. Who knew what traps the Master had undoubtedly set for them. Oh, she doubted any would be that difficult for the two of them working together, but it would be a trial of another sort to get there, with a dubious reward at the end. This had to be why the Master held to his bargain…

The Doctor saw how lost in thought River was, and left her alone. There was plenty to do, without disturbing her. River needed to work through things about Lake Silencio, as much as, if not more so, than she did. The Doctor dropped off the companions that River hadn’t met before today, first, to give her that time to think, undistracted by having to make farewells to friends and family.

Then it was down to just Donna, Wilf, Susan, and River’s grandparents.

Donna had watched Professor Song emotionally withdraw, as if she was steeling herself against emotional pain. She was no shrink, but even she knew she couldn’t let this woman, who had become a good friend, do that to herself. She was going with them to that Lake Silencio place; that was all there was to it. She knew gramps wouldn’t like it. But Professor River Song had saved her twice. The least she could do was be a friend to her. The woman looked like she needed one. Clearly Professor Song was used to being the one who always gave in her relationships, never the one who benefited.

When the Doctor landed in the Noble family’s back yard, Donna said “Go ahead gramps, I’ll think I’d like to take one trip with the Professor and the Doctor before I come back home.”

“It could be dangerous” Both Wilf and River said at the same time.

“Hey, I bet it will be dangerous when you go to that lake. You probably will have to leave your kids in the Tardis alone, right? I can stay with them. That way an adult is here.”

The looks on not just her gramps, but River and Doctor’s faces were of palatable relief.

Wilf was glad because she wasn’t doing the crazy adventure part. River was relieved her children would have someone adult that she trusted to keep her kids that much safer. The Doctor was happy Donna wanted to go along with them. But the remaining guilt over having almost caused Donna’s death made it a relief she was just coming along to help them , in the least risky way.

Considering it was the Doctor, Donna knew something dangerous would likely happen, but with luck, not for her or those kids. And hopefully nothing too dangerous for River and the Doctor. And, if after their rescue, that Clara girl was still pulling that attitude, Donna was looking forward to giving her a set down. Girl clearly thought way too highly of herself. Donna hated people like that. She’d developed a bad streak of it before traveling with the Doctor had changed her, made her see she didn’t have to be that way.. .

That Clara girl had traveled with him for some time and still had the attitude. Apparently the Doctor hadn’t given her a proper set down like he usually did with companions that thought a bit too highly of themselves over others. Actually, from what she saw, the girl seemed to have the Doctor cowed more than any other companions had. Not in the playful bantering way Professor Song engaged with the Doctor, but with an obvious arrogance with nothing to back it up. Professor Song always backed up her words with something real, and showed a deep awareness of other’s feelings, always weighing them far more than her own wants and needs. Donna wondered if associating with the Doctor had changed Professor Song too, or had she always been that way…

Susan hugged her significantly younger grandparents and said “Take me home next. I want everyone to meet my family. We may never get another chance. The 22nd and 23rd centuries are tricky ones to get in and out of” Susan looked at the Doctor, forgivingly.

The Doctor flushed with guilt and shame. Yet another loved one abandoned… perhaps it was time to make up for that.

When they cautiously stepped out of the Tardis, Tabetha Pond turned to Augustus and Brian “I wish Amy and Rory could have been here.”

“Me too.” River said in a whisper, hoping it was low enough the Doctor wouldn’t hear her.

The Doctor did though, and winced, remembering exactly why they couldn’t be there.

Brian, Augustus and Tabetha looked in awe at a London they would have never lived long enough to see, but was close enough to see a few familiar landmarks.

Susan smiled reassuringly. “Come inside. I’ll contact my family and we’ll spend the rest of the day together.”

Donna murmured uncomfortably “I can stay in the Tardis-“

“I wouldn’t hear of it, Donna Noble! As far I’m concerned, we’ve made you an adopted family member!” Susan wrapped her arm through Donna’s and gently towed her along.

Donna looked back at River with an ironic smirk. “She’s definitely the Doctor’s granddaughter.”

“Yes, she is.” River smirked back. Her arm was linked with the Doctor. The Doctor was gently pulling River along with her, like an eager puppy, delight on her face. A lost family, reunited at last.

Susan gave everyone a tour of her home. River smirked when she recognized a few devices far more technologically advanced than the early 23rd century. 52nd century, in fact. So, she knew she would be visiting her granddaughter again, and perhaps her granddaughter would be visiting her. Mixed up time lines, yet again. River would make sure this first visit for her wasn’t her final visit to Susan and her descendants. She was looking forward to seeing them. This early 23rd century London was their home. But first she wanted to ask her granddaughter some questions. Questions that had begun to occupy her mind shortly after her first wedding to the Doctor, but before she conceived their first child.

“Do you know if you regenerate? If so how many times have you? Do your children have the ability? The grandchildren?”

“Grandmother.” Susan laughed. “Shall I reply the way you would have in my place?”

“You know I’ve actually hated keeping anything important from those I love, don’t you?”

“Yes, grandmother. I was just teasing.” Susan laughed. “To answer your question as far as I know: Yes, I can, how many I don’t know, this is my second-“

“What happened?”

“The Daleks came back. I saved the family, got everyone else out, but didn’t make it out myself. Robert came back for me and destroyed that Dalek, and then saw what he thought was his dead wife regenerate.”

“How did he react?”

“Better than I feared. I had told him when we married that I was part alien. He was glad that had saved me. Thankfully the children were quite young then so explanations were simple.”

River nodded “But children still can have difficulty accepting the new face, from what the Doctor has told me, even full time lord children.”

“Yes, I was afraid the change might have been dramatic, but somehow I’d controlled it and it wasn’t. My hair was lighter and longer, my nose was longer and I was a bit more…” Susan blushed lightly and pointed at her breasts

“Ah, that change happened to me… When I physically became River Song.” River smirked. “I was so ridiculously awestruck at what I’d done.”

“Oh, I remember you telling us that story when I was little. How you broke the brainwashing and fell in love with grandfather.”

River laughed. “So that’s what I’ll turn that moment into, a romantic tale for the grandchildren.”

“Well, wasn’t it, ultimately?”

“Yes, it definitely was. Always was for me.” The Doctor answered as she walked into the room.

River’s eyes widened in surprise. “Even though I-“

“Yes. You felt it too, didn’t you, even in your last moments as Mels Zucker?”

“You could tell?”

“It was pretty obvious.” The Doctor laughed.

“Rather messed up courtship..”

“Not quite as strange as you’ve led yourself to believe, River.”

“What do you mean?”

The Doctor blushed lightly and furtively glanced back to see who was in ear shot. “Err.. Is there a place a bit more private?”

“You haven’t told her yet about what happened when two time lords became intensely attracted to each other?” Susan chuckled

“We could take a walk back out to the Tardis.” River winked playfully

“That’s a great idea grandmother.” Susan opened the back door of her home, and let her young grandparents slip out undetected.

“Well, you see, things happen…”

“What kind of things? “ River looked at the Doctor with a mock wide eyed innocence.

The Doctor’s blush was visible even in the evening light. She pulled awkwardly on her jacket sleeve and looked anywhere but River’s face. “Well, it’s not that we try to kill each other or anything, but we get a kind of …predatory feeling, especially if the attraction is mutual. “

“So part of what I felt in Berlin…”

“Yes. Our minds were linked in a sort of fragmented way…and we responded to each other.”

“Oh! The way you looked at me at Byzantium, and when we met up in Area 52, inside the pyramid…”

“Especially the later, I nearly let the drive overtake me there.”

“I remember! Ooh you even chased me, after they handcuffed your hands behind your back….”

“Yes, that’s when I nearly lost my control. “

“And I was both scared and excited. “ She looked lustfully at the Doctor “Lets see how we work together now”

“I thought I’d have to ask you.” A delighted smile reached her eyes. The 12th Doctor snapped her fingers, the door of the Tardis swung open. Laughing like children up to mischief, they ran into the Doctor’s ship.

They stayed a few days with Susan and her family, then after dropping off Tabetha, Augustus and Brian in 21st century England, they headed to Lake Silencio. They waited until the children were safely in bed and asleep to start the rescue mission. It would be easier if The Doctor and River could leave while they were asleep. There was a chance they might even make it back before the children woke up. If they did wake up, at least Donna would be there to keep them company.

“You can trace her, right? Since she was a companion.”

“The Tardis should be able to, but...”

“What?”

“She hates Clara.”

“Well, now you know why.”

“Yes, but still I feel a responsibility.”

“Yes. I know. “

“You always know.”

“Not always. But I understand what happened and why you feel responsible . “ River said softly.

“River, there’s no reason for you to be drawn into feeling responsible.”

“The Doctor’s right, and you shouldn’t feel guilty, neither one.” Donna bluntly responded.

River and the Doctor both looked at Donna and sighed.

“Yeah, yeah, seen that look before from you Doctor. Don’t know why I even bothered.” Donna groused, but looked at them with an ironic grin. “Funny. I had to coax you at first to care, Doctor.”

“Glad you did.”

“I bet you are, you look so thrilled about it right now.”

“You reminded me, that even when it’s difficult, one should always care.”

The Tardis dropped out of the vortex. River made sure the landing was smooth, while the Doctor studied a map that popped up on the monitor. River handed the Doctor her PDA, and the map was quickly downloaded to it. River went down a corridor and came back with an energy pistol strapped into a holster on her thigh.

The Doctor nodded and made sure her new sonic screwdriver was on her person.

“You still have that sonic cane, sweetie?”

“Yes? Why?”

“Oh, just would like to go dancing with you after this. Would love to see the new you in a formal tux . Would you like to go with us Donna?”

“Maybe.” Donna’s smile though, gave away her curiosity.

“Okay. Once this is done I’ll take both of you dancing, wherever you like.”

River and the Doctor opened the door to the Tardis. The lake was in the distance. River thought they were probably on the other side of it as well; there was no sign of the paved road, and the hills or mountains looked closer. Sunset was around an hour and a half away. The Doctor looked at the PDA. “Looks like we will have to go underground, about a kilometer ahead.” She said.

“Cave. Are we close enough yet, to tell anything more?” River leaned over her shoulder and pointed to a symbol on the display.

“Hmm. Well, good thing I’m shorter now. Looks like it’s ceiling is only a couple of centimeters above your head. Doesn’t appear to have much limestone, so probably not many stalagmites or stalactites…”

“Thank goodness for small favors.”

“Definitely a wet cave though.”

“Ugh. So we’ll be muddy and damp.”

“Appears so, sorry.”

“Not your fault.”

An hour later the two cold, wet and miserable rescuers reached a fork in their path.

“Which way, River?”

“Ugh. Mapping ability is sluggish this far down. Hold on. Okay, left fork.”

They took a few steps into their new path and abruptly the stream bottom fell out below them.

River was glad she’d taken the precaution to put the safety cord for the PDA around her wrist. She was able to clutch the cord in her fall and not lose the PDA. However, her energy pistol was now waterlogged. It wouldn’t be useless, but response would be sluggish- if the streambed rose soon. The Doctor was luckier with her sonic. She held it at shoulder level, above the water.

“No injuries?”

“Don’t think so, water’s too cold to tell about abrasions, but nothing serious.”

The new water level quickly dropped. Once it was at her waist. River stopped and pulled the gun and thin holster out of the water and latched it back on to her upper arm. “Thoughtless of me. Should have changed the holster up here as soon as we knew it was a wet cave.”

“it’s still useable?”

“I think so. Let me do a warm up cycle.” To her relief the light came on steady after a long warm up cycle. “Okay. That evaporated the water. Might get a weird steam effect if I have to shoot, but it’s working.” River reholstered the small energy pistol.

“Hope it’s not necessary.”

“Me too.”

“It still amazes me how much You’ve changed , River. I remember how I used to think you’d always be the same. But you were so different in Manhattan...”

“Becoming a mother will do that, change you. I became less reckless, it wasn’t just me anymore. I had a child at home to consider.”

“I know. Do you think I’m too reckless?”

“Of course I do, sweetie, I’m your wife!”

“Sorry. I’m afraid I don’t know how not to be reckless.”

“I know. No matter your face, that remains the same.”

“Even my last one?”

“You know the stories as well as I do…”

The Doctor sighed resignedly. “No matter how much I try, I fall back to my same old ways.”

“It’s just an innate part of you ,I understand that. “

“I’m old enough now, I wish I could. “

River looked at her tenderly. “I love you.”

“Thank you for always loving me. I haven’t done near enough for you to deserve it-“

“You-“

“It’s okay River, I know you will give me much more credit than I’ve ever deserved.”

“Sweetie-“

“River ! Look out!” The Doctor jumped back and shoved River with her. They landed in a tangle of arms and legs, just out of the range of a rock fall that now blocked the path forward. They coughed out water and brushed off the worst of the mud that covered both of them as they stood back up.

“Any injuries?” The Doctor asked.

“Other than a few abrasions, no, you?”

“Same.”

“Well let’s get this rock pile cleared enough that we can crawl through.” River aimed her energy pistol just below the small open space at the top of the pile. Then River gently tugged the Doctor behind her. “We’ll need to step back a bit further, some of the debris will kick back our direction. “

The Doctor nodded and took several steps back. River took one less step back than the Doctor and stood in front of her before she fired the pistol.

The Doctor sighed inwardly at River’s action. She wanted to be the one protecting River, not River acting as the protector, as always…

They coughed a bit at the rock dust that hit them, but when it cleared they smiled at each other, the energy blast had cleared enough space the crawl would be hands and knees not a painful belly crawl. The Doctor held River back before she could start climbing.

“Hold on. Think I have a setting on my sonic that might stabilize the pile before we start up it.”

“Oh, good. Sonic away then.”

After a fifteen minute crawl, the rock pile began to slope downward again. The Doctor clambered down ahead of River, then lifted her arms upward. River grinned and leapt the last few feet into the Doctor’s arms. “Still catching me, sweetie?” She flirted, as the Doctor staggered backwards a step from the impact.

“Always, River, always.” The Doctor smiled. Getting a delightful armful of River was still a nice thing, maybe even nicer in this female body, interesting sensations…Different, but very nice…

River giggled. “We’ll play later, Doctor.”

“Oh, yes, we have a rescue to finish.” The Doctor blushed lightly.


	14. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a rescue, a return home, and a dance

It Is Written In The Stars

Chapter 13

“Okay, there she is.” The Doctor peered around a bend in the path.

The young woman in question was staring the opposite direction. One wrist was chained to the floor. She didn’t looked scared from what River could see. She was tapping a foot in irritation and muttering.

“Don’t go running in for the rescue, honey. It’s likely booby-trapped in some way.”

“It is. Should be able to scan it on your PDA now. See the weak point?”

“Um, yes. Don’t sonic it. I’ll have to fry it. Have to do it before we go any further.”

River dialed the beam down to it’s narrowest level. Sparks flew but the trigger was rendered useless.

Clara leapt up, startled when the beam destroyed the trigger.

The Doctor quickly soniced the manacle off Clara’s wrist.

“Who are you? That guy who put me here said a young looking bloke called the Doctor was going to rescue me, you’re not a bloke and you’re not young either.”

“I’m the Doctor.”

“He lied then?”

“Well…”

River stepped up to them then. “We’ll explain later. Doctor, I’m getting seismic readings on this tunnel.”

“One last booby-trap.”

“We have to get out now.”

“Hey, that guy brought me down here that way, it’s not far to the surface.”

“River?”

“On it. Okay, no booby-traps, from this distance.”

“Ready?” The Doctor looked at Clara, and took her hand

“For what?”

“To run!”

River went first, checking for hidden booby-traps while she ran. The Doctor was close behind, with Clara having some difficulty keeping up. River ended up reaching back and pulling both out just as the exit collapsed behind them.

The three sat on the ground, catching their breath.

“So she’s the Doctor. Who are you?”

“Professor River Song, the Doctor and I are married.”

“Oh. So what are you a Professor of?”

“Archeology.”

“So you do stuff like this often?” Clara looked curiously at both of them.

“From time to time” River smiled.

“Let’s get back to the Tardis. Much better than this. Then we can get you home.” The Doctor said to Clara.

“Tardis?”

“Our transport.” River said

As they walked back River took the Doctor’s hand. River opened up a telepathic link with the Doctor. “I checked her readings on the PDA. She’s not a copy. The Master lied, she’s the original.”

“I kind of guessed that. The Master intended that trap over her to kill her in front of my eyes, I would have triggered the trap with my sonic. Then I would have discovered she was the original that all the copies were made from.”

“And this was your childhood best friend?”

“Yes. When he went completely mad it twisted all his thinking.”

When the dirt covered trio entered the Tardis Clara exclaimed “It’s smaller on the outside!”

The Doctor grinned and whispered to River “That’s what her first copy said too.”

“Different.” River nodded. “Does she seem dissimilar from the copies?”

“Yeah. Think it helps I’m female now, and you announced yourself as my wife, though.”

“Plus we rescued her.”

“Yeah, have to wait and see if the rude comes out…”

“If you want to make her your companion for when I’m not available…”

“No. I’ll take her home. She may not know how much she has been damaged by this association with me, but I know. I’ll make sure she gets back home and leave her to her life.”

“You’re going to test if you can safely travel alone then?”

“Some. But I think I’ll have companions, but limit them to one trip only. Maybe they’ll leave safely then. Only you as a sort of regular companion. And I want to try staying with you some too. Let the children really get to know me. Maybe even…”

“What?”

“Later. Clara is coming our way, and that’s the annoyed rude look on her face.”

“Hey Doctor whoever you are?”

“Yes?”

“Where can I get a bath on this thing?”

“Oh! Yes, we are quite a mess. River, would you mind finding a room for Clara?”

River smirked, “Foisting the rude girl off on me, then?” She thought.

“Well…” The Doctor looked embarrassed.

“It’s okay sweetie, I can handle this. I believe I hear Donna and the children heading our way. I’ll get Clara settled, get my own shower, then come back here.”

River broke the telepathic link, and turned to Clara.

“I’ll show you, follow me.” River smiled politely.

“Okay. So what’s up with this Doctor, who is she? What kind of thing is this?”

“The Tardis travels through time and space-“

“So she’s a time traveler from the future or something?”

“Something like that.”

“How did you meet? Did she rescue you and you fell in love?”

“Yes.” The Doctor had sort of rescued her, back in Berlin after all…

“Wow. When’s she from?”

“Not when, where. The man who kidnapped you and the Doctor come from another planet.”

“So an alien then?”

“Yes.”

“What about you? You seem kind of like her. Are you an alien?”

“Partly, part human though. I grew up on Earth.”

“So you’re from the future then?”

“I live on an Earth colony in the 52nd century. I’m a professor at the university.”

“Wow, 52nd century, I’m from 2013, I’m a nanny.”

“We’ll get you back home soon. I’m sure your family will be glad to see you.”

“Thanks.” Clara then gave River her address.

River typed it into the PDA, then opened the door that appeared out of the Tardis wall. “I’ll come back for you in a half hour.”

“Okay.”

River sighed with relief when the door closed behind Clara. She’d managed to keep the information to just enough to hopefully satisfy the girl’s curiosity. They’d do a memory wipe on her, just the same, for safety’s sake. If Clara remembered anything it’d just be fragments in dreams. River would make sure they got Clara back within a few hours of when she was abducted, so that no one would ever know she was gone.

They exited the Tardis in a park not far from where Clara lived. River pretended she was tired from the rescue ordeal and sat down on a bench with a weary sigh.

“Oh, I think I need to sit down for a bit. Still don’t have all my endurance back yet.”

“Your baby was born recently, right? He looks tiny.”

“Oh yes, he is. Very recently.”

“You shouldn’t push yourself so much, dear.” The Doctor chided, playing along, but serious as well.

“Oh Sweetie, I’m fine.”

“So” Clara looked at them both curiously, “in the 52nd century two women can have kids together?”

“Yes.” River nodded. “They perfected human parthenogenesis for female couples by the 30th century, it took a bit longer for male couples because the baby has to develop in an artificial womb with perfect conditions, but by the 52nd century almost any kind of couple that want to have children can. All kinds of hybrid humans by the 52nd century.”

“Like you.”

“Yes, like me, and my children as well.”

“Wow, must be nice living in that time.”

Uh oh, River thought, she’s getting curious, time to do the memory wipe. River stood up, then pretended to stumble so she fell against Clara, who had started to stand up when River did. River quickly sprayed the memory wipe mist concealed in her hand- where Clara would breathe it directly in. The mist also had an instantaneous soporific effect, Clara slumped back down on the bench fast asleep. They left Clara asleep on a bench, she’d wake up in a minute or two. She’d think she’d dozed off somehow, with no memory of the Doctor or her abduction by the Master.

River and the Doctor hurried back to the Tardis and left quietly, with the brakes off. They embraced and smiled at each other once the Tardis was safely back in the vortex.

“So, River, Donna, you wanted to go somewhere where we could dance?”

“I know just the place Doctor, safe too. The children can come along.”

“A safe adventure for the Doctor, Professor?”

“Yes. My university has a Founders’ Day ball every year. If I go, I do the distinguished professor and mother act, and just watch the dancing from the sidelines. This time I want to dance with my spouse, my friend, and have a grand time. Might just shock some of my students!”

“And your fellow professors.”

“Them too.” River grinned.

When they walked in the building the Doctor spied the children’s rooms- where students and faculty’s younger children were playing or sleeping while their parents enjoyed themselves at the dance. River flashed her staff ID that was coded with her DNA and the door opened.

“Professor Song, Happy Founders’ Day!” A young man greeted her.

“Hello Jochim, finish your degree, yet?”

“Yes! I get to lead an expedition next month!”

“That’s wonderful. I look forward to reading your paper when you get back.”

“Thank you, I’ll try to write as well as you do Professor Song. So, leaving the little ones here? Didn’t know you had a third recently.”

“Yes, Rory Song.” River handed the baby to Jochim. And this is my spouse Doctor Song, and our mutual friend Donna Noble.”

“Hello. Doctor Song, I’ve heard the Professor mention you a few times, great to finally meet you.” Jochim was slightly confused though. He was sure the Professor had used the male pronoun when she spoke of her partner. Maybe the Doctor was from one of those species that shifted gender from time to time? He’d heard of people like that, but none were on this colony. The Professor was well traveled though; who knew where all she’d been to.

River looked at Donna and the Doctor, “Jochim was one of my students the first semester I taught here. One my best students.”

“Thank you Professor Song, that’s a real honor hearing that from you.”

“It’s true. Your papers were always well researched. I rarely found any errors in your work.”

“Just trying to follow your lead, Professor Song.”

“Thank you” she smirked at the Doctor.

The Doctor grinned but said nothing.

Amelia had already abandoned them and was attempting to climb to the top of a toddler slide, up the slide rather than the ladder.

“Mum, she’s doing it the wrong way.” Jonothon looked concerned.

River smiled indulgently, “She’ll figure it out eventually, don’t worry. Look over there, isn’t that Josie, your friend?”

“Yeah. Can I go, mum?”

“Of course, have fun.”

“You too mum!”

“I will.”

The Doctor, River and Donna walked into the dance hall.

“So 52nd century dances aren’t all that different than 21st century ones, looks like. Just add in more aliens.” Donna looked slightly disappointed.

“Some things don’t change that much over time; other things do.” River replied.

“Humans are a very nostalgic people, even when they become as diverse as this.” The Doctor added.

“Indeed we are.” Then River took both their hands “Now, let’s dance.”

Several hours later River did indeed feel tired and she noticed Donna was looking that way too. The Doctor was still enjoying herself at full energy though. River turned to Donna, “Let’s sit down now, let the Doctor play for a while longer on her own.”

“Yeah. You aren’t afraid she’ll get into trouble by herself though?”

“Oh, she’ll probably say something obnoxious to someone, probably an archeology professor. I think most will let it slide, just figure she’s drunk or something.”

Donna chuckled. “You get along really well with this version of the Doctor.”

“So far she’s been the easiest one to be with. She wants to be; that helps. A lot less ego clashes than before. I feel almost like I’m bossing her around sometimes. I should be gentler too, maybe.”

“No, I think she likes that you haven’t changed the way you act toward her that much.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

After fifteen minutes the Doctor wandered back to where they were sitting. “River.” The Doctor looked embarrassed “I think I made one of your professor friends mad. He was going on about some place he’d gone and he had facts all wrong. I corrected him, but he insisted he was right, I was wrong. Then I said something about archeology being rubbish…”

River sighed. She knew exactly who the Doctor insulted. The man was a hopeless blowhard, and the oldest staff member, tenured ages ago. He got away with sloppy research because he was related to the dean of their department. River was looking forward to seeing him retire soon. “Don’t worry, he’s not a friend and he-” River stopped as the man stormed past them, shooting a glare at the Doctor. “He’ll be retiring soon, and the whole department will be glad to see the back of him.” In the meantime though, the toad would probably make sure the dean turned down her next research proposal, and schedule her classes poorly next semester. Perhaps she could take a sabbatical; the Doctor did want to stay around more frequently now… If she could track down the dean before that plague of their department got to him, she might escape unscathed.

“So, I bet it’s archeologists like him that made you ‘point and laugh’ at them?” Donna looked pointedly at the Doctor.

“Yes. If more of them were like my wife…” The Doctor shrugged and smiled.

River sighed, and didn’t bother to argue the point; most weren’t like that horrid idiot in their department. She spotted the dean, speaking with Kirpa, and laughing at something her friend had said. “I’ll be right back, I just remembered I needed to talk to the dean tonight about arranging a sabbatical for next semester. If you wouldn’t mind getting the children, we can leave right after.” River gave the Doctor a quick hug, and hurried away before she could reply.

“Come on Doctor, think she’s worried you’ll say something rude to her boss, lets go get your kids.”

“But I wouldn’t..”

“Yeah, not on purpose anyway, but all the same, bet your kids will be happy to see you.” Donna gently pulled the Doctor toward the door.

The Doctor relented then, and laughed. “Yes, why waste my time with another archeologist. Boring!”

River rolled her eyes, she’d heard the Doctor. Well, at least she’d made a little progress. Archeologists “like her” were now acceptable to the Doctor. She quickly sent a sabbatical request on her PDA to the dean’s office, but asking in person as well would speed up the process. If luck was with her she might get it tonight, and thus avoid the wrath of “Professor Windbag” all together.

Ten minutes later a relieved River, sabbatical request approved, went to find the others. She saw the Doctor and Donna through the children’s rooms window, Amelia drowsily holding a doll by the hair in the Doctor’s arms. Jochim had just handed the baby to Donna. Jonothon spotted his mother through the window and ran to greet her as soon as she opened the door.

“Mum, can I go to Josie’s house tomorrow?”

River hesitated, fiercely protective urge warring with the wish for a normal childhood for him.

“Please, mum?”

River sighed. “Let me talk to Josie’s parents. If they say it’s okay, then yes.”

“Thanks mum!”

River hugged her son. “Now be a good boy, okay?”

“Yes, mum!”

They walked to River’s house.

“What galaxy are we in Professor Song?” Donna asked as she looked up at the twin moons and unfamiliar stars.

“Oh this is still in the Milky Way galaxy, not far from Earth by galactic standards, actually. The solar system was called Rigil Kent on Earth. Rigilia is what this planet goes by now, the citizens are Rigilians. This is the University of Kent because the founding generation called it that, and called themselves Kentonians. Over the generations people came to prefer Rigilia instead, wanting to not feel so bound to Earth. The university is one of the few places in this system with the old name. That’s why the Founder’s Day ball takes place here.”

“There’s Rigilia Day too.” Jonothon piped in.

“Yes. It’s a bit more political though, Founder’s Day is all nostalgia. Talk can get a bit heated, there’s some resentment at Earth and the Sol system in general. Rigilians think the Sol system dominates government too much, that sort of thing.”

“Hmm, I see what you mean about some things don’t change that much.” Donna mused,

“No, it’s just on a grander scale in some ways.”

“Well,” Donna sighed “I suppose the Doctor should be taking me home now.”

“Any time you’re ready, the Tardis is right over there.” The Doctor pointed

“Better leave now, or I might be tempted to stay. But Professor Song, Doctor, that doesn’t mean not seeing me any more. You stop by and visit, okay?”

“We will.” River and the Doctor both replied.

“Mum, can we go along to take Aunt Donna home?” Jonothon pleaded.

River smirked and the Doctor chuckled. “Yes, everyone can come along!” The Doctor grinned

“Aunt Donna?” River whispered.

“Well, your granddaughter told me I was family, so…”

“Oh, it’s fine.” River nodded. “Makes it a bit easier than trying to explain the whole companion thing in detail.”

“I can imagine, especially some of them…”

“Yes. That will wait till he’s older. Much older.”

They both laughed.


	15. Chapter 14

It Is Written In The Stars, Chapter 14

“I’m disappointed at myself.”

“Why? You’ve been here a full year. “

“Yes, but-“

“No, it’s fine, go, have fun adventures. But when you feel lonely, we’re right here. You have another home here, whenever you need it.”

The Doctor nodded, but still looked ashamed.

“Go on with you.” River pushed the Doctor into the Tardis

“Why don’t you come with me, River?”

“We will, sometimes.”

The Doctor sighed morosely, “But not all the time.”

“No, and you know why.”

“I’m sorry River. I’m so irresponsible.”

“Stop that.” River said firmly. “I’ve watched you try this whole past year. You just need a break for a bit. That’s normal.”

The Doctor smirked “Oh River, you should know by now I’m anything but normal.”

“Now then, that’s my Doctor.” She winked.

“Promise I’ll come back, River.”

“Of course you will.”

River stepped back from the Tardis and watched it disappear. She nodded to herself, that’s the Doctor sorted. Now things could actually get done around here. She was behind on her next book, a research project and grading the students’ papers. Oh Doctor you are so wonderful, but you are pure chaos. I love you more than the entire universe, but dear, I need the break as much as you do. The children will be upset that you left without telling them goodbye, but they’ll be fine. They’ll be happy to see you when you return. They need to have that return to normal life too, even if they don’t realize it.

Two months went by and indeed Jonothon and Amelia readjusted. The baby, who had only known life with the Doctor, was still fussy though. It would be more difficult for him. It could be months or even years before they saw the Doctor again. River did catch Amelia still frequently gazing out the window, wistfully.

They were settling in for a normal evening, River had broken up a minor squabble between Jonothon and Amelia over toy, and the baby was drowsily sitting in her lap as they all watched a popular holovid for children. River was vaguely bored by it and was planning next week’s lecture outlines, when they heard a ship pass over the house flying too fast and too low. River tensed to hear the expected crash and the baby began to cry.

River let out her held breath when instead of a colossal crash, there was only a thump.

“Sounds like they corrected just in time. Jonothon, stay here and watch your brother and sister. I’m going to see if they need help.” Or if they are a threat, she thought to herself.

When she got to the crash site, she wasn’t surprised to see her neighbors were also hurrying there. The police and medical were already on site. From what she could tell from the back, it appeared the two person crew of the ship was uninjured. They appeared to be a human male and female. The ship was woefully outdated. It looked like a 39th century small family transport with some modifications from more recent centuries added on. It made her itch to fix the slapdash job. Oh, to purely human eyes it would have looked neat and professional, but she wasn’t just human…. 

The man half turned in her direction as he was waving off the medical people. River realized she knew who he was a moment before he clearly recognized her.

“It’s the Doctor’s wife! Look over there!” Mickey Smith shouted excitedly to his wife, Martha Jones.

River sighed as one of the police officers sprinted over to her. “Do you know these people, Professor Song?” The young woman looked mildly annoyed.

“Yes, they are associates of my husband.”

“Well they landed without proper clearance, and created property damage in the park grounds, and their ship is now a public nuisance…”

River nodded, time to call in a small favor. “Is Jake on call for assistance?”

“Think so, you gonna have him tow it to yours?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll pay for the park repairs too.”

“Okay, that leaves the clearance problem, but since you can vouch for them, we can reduce that to reckless, fine’s not too big on that, especially first time offenders.”

“I’ll pay that too.”

“You are a heck of a friend, Professor Song, doing all that. Don’t think I’d be that charitable, even to a close friend.”

River shrugged. “Wasn’t the mayor talking about revitalizing the park just last week? Maybe it won’t cost so much, just consider it a head start on her project.” River smirked.

The officer chuckled. “I’ll pass that along.”

Soon the damaged transport was resting in River’s underground garage, while River’s surprise guests were sitting on her couch.

Mickey looked embarrassed. “Thank for getting us out of that, Professor. Sitting in jail isn’t my idea of fun.”

River chuckled, “River is fine for any friends of my husband.”

“How did that happen? You and the Doctor marrying?” Martha looked at her curiously.

“I can tell you traveled with the Doctor for a while, you asked how rather than when. Of course, with the Doctor and I, how is rather complicated as well.”

Mickey and Martha grinned. “Everything is complicated with the Doctor.”

“Indeed. But even for the Doctor and me, how we ended up married was extremely complicated.”

“How?”

“Well, when you have two time travelers meeting each other out of order…”

“Are you a time agent then?”

“You mean like Jack Harkness? Not exactly; although, we have spent the majority of our lives in similar time periods.”

“You aren’t a time lord, are you?”

“In part. I wasn’t born on Gallifrey, never been there actually; I’m part time lord, part human.”

“So they are genetically compatible?”

“Apparently so.” River smirks, pointing to herself, then her children.

“Would you allow me-“

River pulled up her latest medical records on her PDA. “Fifty-second century medical terminology might not be familiar to you, but the visuals will be.”

“Two hearts like the Doctor, so you can regenerate, right?”

“Yes, I could.” A flash of guilt and sadness crossed her face.

“Could?”

“I’m on my last one.”

“Oh, what about the Doctor?”

“One more.”

Mickey looked at her solemnly. “So you could-“

“Die before. Possibly, but considering how the Doctor lives, I’ll likely outlive him.” River smiled lopsidedly. They had no idea.

“You’re okay with that?”

“When we were first married, no, not at all. But that was a long time ago. I’ve accepted that possibility now.”

“You have a family now.” Martha looked at her with some understanding.

“That’s part of it. The rest is time and other things. I’ll miss him more than the entire universe, but I understand it. I already faced that when I lost my parents.”

“You said you were part time lord?”

River cringed inwardly, how much will they guess, how much to tell… “Yes”

“So how did that happen?”

“Well, when a married couple…” River smirked

“What my wife is asking is how you are half time lord?”

Martha smacked Mickey’s arm. River’s joking non answer was the Professor guarding some of her secrets, just like the Doctor. She was trying not to tell it.

River looked at them and sighed. “Well, you are companions of the Doctor… sometimes secrets can be told…” An edited version anyway, she thought.

“My parents were companions of the Doctor-“

“When?”

“There’s no when with the Doctor.”

“But it was before the Time War?”

“No, he met them after that.”

“But-“

“My age, you wonder about that, right? How can it be after?”

“Yes.” They both said.

River glanced over and saw Jonothon and Amelia had come close, anticipating a story, even though they heard versions of this story before. She smiled at them then began.

“The Doctor met my parents shortly before they married. He felt quite close to them, and they wished to continue traveling with him, so he gave them a honeymoon trip- and oh what a honeymoon that was!”

Jonothon and Amelia giggled; River had told them the tales of Amy and Rory’s adventures with the Doctor, including the numerous honeymoon misadventures. River smiled, unknown to their parents at the time, but they had a little passenger along with them- herself, in utero.

“Were they a time lord and human couple or both part time lords?”

“Neither!” River laughs.

“But how-“

“Can I be about half time lord?”

“Yes.”

“Now, that’s the story. And it begins when my parents were young. My parents were human, but had just a tiny genetic alteration. You are familiar with time rifts, right?”

“Like in Cardiff?”

“Yes, although, on the surface, what was in Leadworth was much smaller. So small it was just a tiny crack in the wall of a girl’s bedroom. It wasn’t quite the same thing as a time rift. It was a small but constant dose of what created time lords on Gallifrey. My father was a frequent guest growing up, so both were exposed to this subtle genetic alteration. The science of human DNA was only truly beginning during their lifetimes, so that minimal an alteration was undetectable. I doubt even Torchwood or UNIT had the capability to detect it. “

“When were they from?”

“The same time period the majority of the Doctor’s companions are- late twentieth and early twenty-first century. It’s a nexus point for Earth. The Doctor isn’t the only time traveler from elsewhere drawn to Earth in this time.”

“Captain Jack! You know him?”

“In passing, but mostly from my husband and the Tardis records.”

“If your parents were only minimally altered, how come you-“

“Are around half time lord? Getting to that.”

“Sorry, it just didn’t add up.”

“its fine, Martha, I question things just as much, that’s why I’m an archeologist.”

Martha smiled, “I want to see what it’s like to go to university in this time.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“Sure. I need to go to my office tomorrow; you can come in with me and the children.”

“You have a whatever they call it now that big?”

“I do, but we won’t need to drive in, it’s only a few blocks away.”

“Oh.”

“Speaking of ships, I want to take a look at yours; it’s going to need repairing.”

“You can fix ships?”

“A lot better than my husband!” River laughed.

“Well, I might let you look at it then!” Mickey grinned back at her.

“Now, like I said earlier, the Doctor gave my parents a honeymoon adventure. I was conceived during that time on the Tardis, in the vortex.”

“You mean if a couple-“

“No, there was more to it than that. However, any child would be changed in some minimal way if they were, yes.”

“Explains why, until your parents, the Doctor said no married couples then.”

“Yes, although any of his companions could pass along a very minimal alteration, especially those where both were companions of the Doctor.”

“So our kids?”

“Yes. But very minimal. Undetectable by twenty-first century Earth science.”

“But detectable in this century?”

“Yes, and by now most humans have at least that level of alteration; many are hybrids like me and my children. Although not this particular genetic mix.”

“So how did you end up being a hybrid?”

“The Tardis decided it wanted a child.” River smirked.

“What?”

“The Tardis isn’t a mere machine. She is a living entity.”

“Yeah, I sort of got that.”

“The Tardis is not only a living entity, but capable of thought. Quite complex thought.”

“So it decided-“

“Yes. The Tardis quite liked my parents as well. The Tardis doesn’t always like the Doctor’s companions, but my parents, she did.”

“She?”

“The Tardis identifies as female, yes. She calls me her child. When I was conceived, the Tardis entwined time lord DNA with my human DNA. I’m roughly half timelord, and my children- with no additions from the Tardis” River grinned, “are around three-quarters”.

“I suppose the Tardis really loves them.”

“Of course.”

“What happened to your parents?”

“Weeping Angels.”

Martha and Mickey grimaced. Then Martha asked, “The Doctor couldn’t rescue them?”

“No, they were stuck in a place and time with too many time paradoxes and they had too many connected with them as well.”

“Were you there when it happened?”

“Yes.”

Martha and Mickey looked at River sympathetically.

“It was very long ago. I’m fine now.” River looked at the clock “Time for bed, I think.”

Mickey and Martha grinned when River’s two older children’s reactions were the same as any child’s…

“One more story, mum?”

“Please mum?”

“Off to bed, both of you.” River said, mock sternly. “I’ll tell you one more once you are in bed.”

They grumbled but went up the stairs.

“I’ll be headed for bed as well; do you need anything in the guest room?”

“Not at all, but we might be up for a while”

“Sure. I have the wake up alarm set for myself and the children. Would you like me to set it for you as well? You don’t have to come in with us in the morning; you probably need rest after the stress of today.”

“We’ll be fine. We’ll wake up when you do.”

“Okay.” River added the guestroom to the wake up alarm. She wondered if they had experienced having a wall monitor pop on and wake them. It could be quite obnoxious if you stayed in bed too long after the set time. But they had traveled with Doctor. If the Doctor decided a companion had slept long enough he could be quite obnoxious waking them up. Amy and Rory complained about the Doctor not only doing that on the Tardis, but even in their home. River chuckled inwardly, the Doctor knew better than to even try with her; he learned quickly she had methods to make sure her schedule wasn’t disrupted….


	16. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was one the chapters I was really looking forward to writing, hope you enjoy it.

It Is Written In The Stars, chapter 15

“Thought nothing was worse than the Doctor’s wake up call. Ugh. Do you have any coffee? How have you not wanted to destroy that thing?” Mickey looked disgusted.

“Oh I still curse at it in multiple languages every morning. But when your job means being on time is paramount …” River shrugs with a grin, then pointed to the two filled coffee mugs on the counter.

Martha chuckles. “If you curse at it, it treats those curses as your name and says it back to you!”

“Yeah, I programmed it to be a bit snarky with me. The guest room was on the default adult wake up setting- mine. The snarkiness wakes me up. I’ll change it to a less offensive setting if you’d prefer.”

“Yes” Mickey said

“No” Martha laughed, “I think it does wake you up faster.”

“Ugh, don’t tell me you want something like that on the ship now.”

“Would get us going quicker”

Mickey grumbled a bit but then smirked “Only if you give in on that holoplayer I wanted.”

“That thing was too big; where would we put it?”

“What model?” River jumped in, betting it was something older than 52nd century.

“GNX 8420”

She nodded. “They were good, sturdy, long lasting, but energy monsters like you wouldn’t believe, and yeah, kind of too big for a ship your size. I have one on my ship that is actually better, and made for ships not homes.”

“Told you that was for the home, not a ship.”

“Yeah, yeah heard you. So can I see the one you have River?”

“Sure, if you don’t mind waiting until we get back?”

He nodded, and stepped out of way as Amelia ran pell-mell into the kitchen, giggling and clutching an old plastic toy airplane in her hand. “Got it back, nyah nyah!”

“Don’t care” Jonothon followed at a more normal pace, his baby brother on his back.

Little Rory was giggling, enjoying the piggy-back ride.

“Mum, don’t forget about the party tomorrow.”

“I won’t, everything is right here, all ready for it.”

“Birthday party?”

“No. School vacation, mid year break. The youngest ones have a party in their classrooms, the middle years have an activity day outside, and the oldest have a career day, of sorts.”

“I guess this normal life is good for them after..”

“Yes. I forget sometimes that most of the Doctor’s companions were there, and saw…”

“Does it bother you, that your kids saw that?”

“Yes, but the Doctor has been here for most of the past year. That helped Jonothon and Amelia get past what they saw.”

“Kind of weird the Doctor’s a woman now though; how did they adjust to that?”

“Quite well, actually, especially Jonothon.”

You don’t know when he, oops she, will be back though?”

“No, one never knows with the Doctor. I’m hoping she comes back while you are visiting though; she’ll be so happy to see you both again.”

“Even me?” Mickey smirks.

“Sure. The Doctor felt bad about not being that kind to you.”

“That’s good to know.”

After dropping off Jonothon at his school, River led Mickey and Martha to her classroom at the university. “You’re in luck; they asked me to teach “The Earth in the First Time Rift era”. We are up to the early 21st century. Do try not to snicker too much at some of the questions you’ll hear.” River chuckled.

“What about your kids? Don’t they have day care in this century?”

“They do for parents who want it or need it, but I like to have mine with me. It’s still difficult to watch Jonothon go off to school every day, even though his school is only a block away from here…”

“You want to make sure they are safe, right?” Martha looked sympathetic.

“Yes.” It was a deeper feeling than even Martha likely guessed. Back to the nightmare childhood in that awful orphanage… River shuddered and pushed those fragments of terror away.

“Would you like us to watch them while you teach?”

“Rory’s pretty good, as long as he can see me and hear my voice he’s happy. He likes to watch the pictures too. Amelia, though, she’s a bit restless, takes more after the Doctor. Don’t think Archeology holds her interest.” River smirked. “She’s curious about new people though; she likes both of you. I think she’ll behave better if she does sit with you. I brought along a couple of her toys, and a holobook she likes.”

“Holobook?” Mickey looked interested.

“It’s interactive, but without sound. If she sits on the floor and plays with it, it doesn’t interfere with class.”

River watched Mickey and Martha sit in the back next to each other with Amelia on the floor with her holobook.

“Professor Song?”

“Yes, Gordon?”

“How did they colonize Mars in the 2030’s? Their technology level should have made that nearly impossible.”

“Not by the 2030’s. Although, the worldwide economic crash of the turn of that millennium set them back, secret government agencies like UNIT and Torchwood, in the UK, were collecting and figuring out alien tech. They were doing secret test flights by 2015, probably earlier. In 2025 an American company, later found to be a front for a secret government agency, publicly announced a test flight. The successful mission to Mars opened up the doors to exploration again.”

Mickey and Martha grinned; they knew about UNIT and Torchwood, firsthand.

“Did the terraforming technology come from the same studies?”

“Yes, Harumi, and Jacob, my guess you were going to ask about the weapon technology?

The blue skinned young man nodded.

“Yes, it’s certain that the great technological leap to energy weapons at the beginning of the second third of the 21st century came from the clandestine research of the later 20th and earlier 21st centuries.”

“Professor Song?”

“Yes Mike?”

“I’m sorry, think I’m going to be sick”

River looked at the young man on the front row. Mike, usually an eager and attentive student, was sweating heavily, and his legs were shaking, even seated in the chair. She pressed the medical alert button on the wall, then went over to the young man.

“Are you nauseated?”

“Kind of, not bad, but I feel like I’m shaking apart and it’s too hot in here.”

Martha stepped up and felt his pulse. “Professor, his pulse is way too fast if he’s human.”

River nodded and softly explained to Martha. “His “mother” is from a planet where the people biologically switch genders every 5 years. His father is from one the few fully human families left in the universe. Neither side of the family had approved of the relationship. Some genetic tinkering had been necessary for Mike to be born healthy. His parents had made him genetically mostly human, and had suppressed the biological gender switching tendencies, out of worry that it would damage Mike’s health growing up.”

“Just suppressed, not made recessive? I think I know what’s happening. His mother’s genes are exerting themselves. He needs to get medical treatment immediately.”

“I’ve alerted them. They should be on their way.”

“Okay. I’ve had some experience with semi human and non human patients, I’ll see if I can do something until they get here.” Martha then spoke softly to Mike. “How long have you felt sick like this?”

“Yesterday.”

“What symptoms?”

“Like this, but not so bad. It stopped as soon as I laid down.”

“Then let’s get you out of that chair and on the floor.”

“Don’t think I can stand up.”

“And with the convulsing, sliding down would be difficult too” Martha bit her lip.

“Mike, can you move your arms to your side?” River said calmly

Mike groaned but removed his arms from the desk and brought them to his side. His torso now shook along with his legs.

Then River turned to Martha. “Stand behind him and hold him still.”

“Are you doing what I think you are?” Martha gently, but firmly, held Mike in place in the chair. His torso shaking diminished slightly.

“Probably.” River took hold of the desk stem and wrenched it away from the chair. It broke off cleanly. River dropped it to the ground.

Martha was briefly startled by River’s strength, but then moved around to Mike’s front and put her hands under his arms. River took Mike’s legs and they laid him on the floor. Once River stood up and let Martha take over the children came over to her. Little Rory clung to her leg tightly and looked scared. Amelia held her hand but was more curious.

“He’s sick mum, right?”

“Yes.”

“Can they make him well?”

“I hope so.”

Amelia nodded.

The medic team rushed into the room, River stepped out of their way.

“Do you have medical training?” One them brusque stated, looking at Martha.

Yes, I’m a Doctor, with xenobiology experience.”

“Okay. Is the patient stabilized enough to move?” The medic aimed a device at Mike.

“Do you have an anticonvulsant that he can use?”

“Checking his medical records.” The medic turned the device back toward herself. “Not with us”.

Martha and the head medic shared a grimace.

“Got a muscle relaxer that’s safe, don’t know if it will work but it won’t hurt even if it doesn’t.”

“Better than nothing.”

“We hope.”

Another member of the medic team bent down and touched a metal square to Mike’s forehead. “Any better?” He gently asked Mike.

“Little bit, don’t feel like I’m going to shake into pieces anymore.”

“Convulsions have stopped, probably won’t last long though. Let’s get him out of here.” They lifted Mike onto the anti-grav stretcher and hurried from the room.

Only then did River turn to look back at her students. Their quiet, anxious faces made her take a deep breath to calmly address them. “Mike is probably a friend to most of you. I know you are worried. Listening to my lecture isn’t something you can do right now. We’ll take up where we left off next class. It may take some time to get Mike well enough so he can see you. Go be with each other a while, away from the hospital, then go. Hope for the best.”

River watched her students solemnly leave the room, none of the usual young adult spirit in them. Perhaps, for some, it was their first experience with seeing someone in a life threatening situation. Martha and Mickey both gave her a hug. She hugged them both back.

“You okay?” Mickey looked at her concerned.

“Just a bit in shock, like all of us. Been long enough since I dealt with anything that traumatic… Hmm used to be better at hiding my reactions, slipping in my old age, maybe.” She smiled wryly.

“You don’t look old.” Mickey grinned.

“Half Time Lord, remember?”

“Bet you aren’t a day over 50.”

“Pretty close.” River laughed.

“Then you’d have to be practically a baby if you are part Time Lord. I mean the Doctor, even when I first met him was over 900.”

“Ah, but I’m half human.”

“Still, bet you’re like a teenager.”

“And wouldn’t that be a scandal” River grinned “So young and already married and a mother, with a spouse ever so much older than me!”

“Think that boy will be okay?”

“I don’t know. They may have to take him back to his mother’s people. They might be able to help. I better notify his parents. Admin is supposed to but well… If I do, they’ll be notified today. Admin, maybe sometime this week. There’s a place nearby where we can relax and I can send that message.”

“Decent food?”

“Yes, and it’s too dull for the students, so it’s quiet.”

“Sounds great.”

That evening Mickey, Martha, River and her children waited along with Mike’s friends in the hospital to hear the prognosis.

“Professor Song?” A young man in medical scrubs called out.

“Yes?”

“Mike’s parents wanted to thank you for your quick response-“

“Will Mike be okay?”

“Mike will need care with the mother’s family, but yes.”

“Good. I’ll see what I can do to get the university to let Mike continue my class, if that’s what Mike wants.”

“Yes. Mike was quite upset about the offworld treatments, if it meant taking incompletes in coursework.”

“Will this first transition be-“

“Difficult? Perhaps. Mike’s grandmother is a medical professional, she’s quite firm about wanting to help.”

“So they’ve accepted their grandchild?”

“Yes.”

“Good”

“She wants to talk to you, can I give you your contact info?”

“Absolutely.”

“Mike wants to see you now. I think it might be too tiring to let all his friends in tonight, but we’ll let them see him briefly tomorrow before he goes offworld.”

River nodded. “I’ll tell them, they need their rest too, no need for them to sit around here all night.”

After most of Mike’s friends left, River turned to Mickey and Martha. “Mike wants to see me; could you wait with my kids just outside the door? There’s a waiting area there.”

“Sure.”

“Professor, thanks for helping me. Sorry about the desk, my parents want to pay for the replacement.”

“It’s fine; it was a medical emergency. I already have your friends in my class vouching for me. The university will pay for it. The dean will just tell me to be less enthusiastic in my life saving next time.” River chuckled.

“You know what? My grandmother wants not just me and my mom, but my dad too, to start coming to see them on all the holidays. She said it was ‘far past time my dad and I started being a part of the family’.”

“What about your grandfather?”

“He wants to see mom and me, grandmother says he’ll warm up to dad, eventually, she’ll make sure of it.”

“Did your mother suppress her transitions when you were growing up?”

“No, she was willing to, if it meant dad’s family would accept her. Dad said no, if they didn’t accept her as she was, then he didn’t need them.”

“So they are ‘human purists’?” River carefully schooled her expression neutral.

“Yeah.” Mike grimaced. “I’m their least favorite grandchild. Now, they’ll probably pretend I don’t exist at all.”

River clasped his hand. “Perhaps your father is right, if they can’t accept you as you are, you don’t need them.”

“Yeah. Professor, you think they’ll ever though?”

“I don’t know. Sometimes people don’t change, even if we wish they would.”

“Did that happen to you?”

“Yes, my great aunt Sharon. She never accepted me as a relative.”

“Why, professor?”

“Kind of for similar reasons as your father’s parents. She wouldn’t accept a ‘weird alien’ as part of her family.”

“Yeah, that’s what grandfather called me.”

“Well, it’s their loss, not ours, don’t forget that.”

River glanced back to the doorway when Mike grinned at something behind her. It was Amelia.

“Mum! Rory won’t stop whining.” She complained.

“Professor Song, your kids are missing you, I think.”

“Yes. I think so too. You rest up. I’ll send you the next assignment as soon as you get settled, we’ll set up a link so you can attend my lectures from your grandmother’s house.”

“Thanks professor, tell your friend thanks too.”

“I will.”

　


End file.
